Vacancy
by Mutant-Enemy-730
Summary: Four years post Chosen, Faith's been off being a Champion for the Powers, what happens when she returns back without notice to Buffy and the Scooby Gang?
1. Rest Stop

Disclaimer: I own nothing, 'cept for any OC's I may create. Props and kudos go to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and the cast and crew of BtVS.

Timeline: Four years post-Chosen. All else will follow.

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The dusty windows of the roadside restaurant provided little more than a smudged view of the empty road that passed by it. The owner, a man by the name of Frank, had been watching people drive by his restaurant for more than 30 years. He could pick out who would stop for a rest, from half a mile away. He could tell you stories for weeks about the types of people and vehicles that had come in and out of this restaurant.

Today was a slow day for Frank and his fellow workers. A family of seven had grumbled in around nine in the morning, and aside from a couple of people stopping for the rest room or coffee, nothing interesting had happened. Frank was cutting the grill, preparing to shut it down to keep the heat in the already sweltering restaurant down until it was needed when Lydia, the waitress from behind the counter, called for him to come to the front.

"What's up girl?" Frank asked as he wiped his hands off on his apron.

Lydia nodded towards the windows, "Motorcycle, Northbound. You think it's a Suzuki?"

Frank moved next to Lydia, squinting at the image of a motorcycle coming upon them rapidly, "Naw. Ducati, 2003-ish probably. They'll stop."

"Are we betting on this?" Lydia quirked her eyebrow at her longtime boss, a hint of a smile playing at the edges of her lips.

"Do you want to?" Frank smirked back before flicking his gaze to the window again, "See? They're stopping."

Lydia turned to look back out the window as the motorcycle pulled in and slowed to a stop next to the door, "Damn."

"Paul, turn on the grill," Frank called out, hearing a soft 'shit' out back before Paul scrambled inside the restaurant.

All three turned towards the sound of the jingle above the door as it opened. A tall woman in a dark denim jacket and dark blue jeans walked in, unbuttoning her jacket to reveal a red shirt beneath. Dark brown banana curls fell upon her shoulders, framing her face- softening it- in a slight innocence. Her eyes aged her beyond her youthful looks, as if she had been through more in five years than most people saw in their lifetime, and to anyone who knew her, this was true.

The woman sauntered slowly up to the counter and took a seat on the stool, eyeing the people watching her.

"Coffee please, black." The woman's voice was thick, with a gravelly scratch to it that could be seen as either sexy, or just someone who smokes too much.

"Comin' right up ma'am." Lydia turned quickly, glad to have something to do.

Frank leaned on the doorframe that led to the grill and kitchen, his eyes locking on the woman sitting at his counter, "You from around here ma'am?"

"No, just passing through. Actually, do you have a map or anything I might be able to look at?" Came the gravelly drawl as she cocked her head to one side, allowing a smile to flash across her face for a brief moment.

Frank shook his head, "'Fraid not ma'am, the only map around is up here," Frank tapped his head, smirking slightly.

"Well then, do you know how I could get to Ohio from here?" the woman asked before thanking Lydia for the coffee.

"Ah, Ohio," Frank leaned back slightly, scratching his stubbly chin, "Well, continue on North, this is the main highway that'll take you up there. Plenty of road signs and exits as you go up further. As long as you follow the main routes up through Kentucky, you'll be fine."

"Thanks," the woman nodded, sipping her coffee.

"Mind if I ask ya a question?" Frank cocked his head to one side, his tone serious.

"Shoot," the woman replied.

"If ya are just passing through, why you all the way down here, trying to get up to Ohio?"

The woman was silent for a moment, her gaze ticked to a menu long since faded on the wall. Turning her deep brown eyes back on Frank, a flash of tiredness skipped through them- a flash that was not lost upon Frank.

"Well, I know people up there. Haven't seen them in quite a few years, planning on dropping in and seeing what happens," the woman smirked again before finishing her coffee and standing.

Frank watched as she pulled a few bills out of her pocket before saying, "On the house ma'am. You've got a long way to go before you're home."

The woman leveled her gaze at him for a moment, and Lydia could see something pass between them before the woman nodded in thanks and turned to leave.

"Frank…"

"That woman has seen things I can't even imagine, and I've seen things I wish I hadn't in 'Nam. Whatever she's going back to, she'll need all the kindness she can get." Frank cut off any comment from Lydia before finally turning back into the kitchen, muttering at Paul, "Turn the damn grill off you goof, she didn't want food, why'd you leave it on?"

Lydia shook her head at her boss, all the while her gaze watching the brunette pull her black helmet on and kick start her motorcycle before driving out, leaving a dust trail behind her.

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First chapter, new story, first time in the Buffy fiction area, but hey, long time fan, long time fan fiction writer.


	2. Thinking Back

Thanks for all the reviews!

Faith-rulz and Priscilla19- yeah, I love Ducati's, so all I could see was Faith riding one.

RockerWolfPup- thanks for the positive comments on my writing style!

--Flashbacks, as well as thoughts, will be in Italics (I'll try to keep it uncomplicated.)—

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Faith could feel her now. In fact, she'd been able to feel her for the last hour. Now, as she ground out a cigarette beneath her boot heel at some local restaurant just inside Cleveland, Ohio, Faith began to get the itch to turn around and drive away before it was too late.

Too late to get out before she did something like last time…_and that doesn't include killing people or turning evil_.

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_Faith and Buffy were sparring, not unusual for them, especially since the last couple of months. Since the official close of the Hellmouth, vamp and demon activity had slowed quite a bit, and the move to Cleveland hadn't given them any more kills per night than usual. Apparently this Hellmouth wasn't even close to as bad as the one in Sunnydale. No wonder shit was happening there all the time. Back to the point- vamp activity was down, so sparring activity was up._

_Willow_ _had told Faith once that watching the two of them spar was like watching water and fire together. Faith originally found it as a cure to the itch of the hungry and hornies, but recently, sparring with the blonde had only been making them worse. Today was no better. With the amount of time they spent together, they learned each others' moves backwards and forwards and didn't hold back. It seemed that every day they just got closer- physically- while sparring._

_Buffy threw a flurry of punches at Faith, who blocked them quickly before sweeping her leg out, causing the blonde to jump over and land an elbow to her back. Faith stumbled forward before kicking out behind herself, and upon feeling Buffy's hands grasp her foot, used her momentum to spin around into the air to kick Buffy in her side. Buffy released Faith's foot with a grunt, and moved away from Faith. _

_Faith waited. It seemed that was all she did for anything in relation to her sister slayer. Though now was not the time to dwell on it. Faith focused back on the present situation in time to stop Buffy's roundhouse kick, but not to stop the second spin Buffy made, initiating the loss of Faith's balance. Faith felt herself falling and grabbed Buffy as she fell so that they would be on even ground. Too bad her brain didn't think far enough ahead to realize that the smaller slayer would land right on top of her._

_One word was running through Faith's head at that moment, "shit." This was not good in a really bad way. Post- Sunnydale, Faith had gotten closer to Buffy. She would even consider them friends. They had begun anew, on even ground, and they clicked far better now that they ever did back when Faith was unstable- but as friends only. Recently though, Faith had begun to feel differently. She didn't know how to explain it, maybe it was just "stronger feelings" for the shorter slayer that bypassed "caring for a friend" far too easily. So, at this moment, the fuzzy feelings Faith had been getting around Buffy were on full alert due to the full physical contact, but that wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was the strong second half of the H&H's pulsing through her at that moment._

_It was around the tenth long second that Buffy had lain atop Faith without moving that the dark slayer quirked an eyebrow up at her and smirked slightly- in true Faith fashion of course._

"_B, you gonna get offa me, or you enjoying the relocation?" Faith teased, enjoying the blush that swept across the smaller slayer's face before she began to climb off her. Faith, not ready to end the teasing- certainly not because she wanted more contact- grabbed the blonde's wrist and pulled her back down._

_Buffy landed hard, her left hand reaching out to brace her fall next to Faith's head, and her legs falling to either side of the dark slayer's legs. Buffy's face fell within inches of Faith's, and suddenly Faith didn't think it was a good idea anymore to tease. Buffy was now all she could smell, breathe and feel. A soft groan rumbled in her throat at just how perfectly Buffy's hips had landed and her eyes dropped to the blonde's. Both slayers would later call it a moment of weakness – caught up in the flow of the fight – at least to each other, but Faith knew what she felt the moment Buffy dropped her head those last few inches and allowed her lips to brush against Faith's. She was terrified, in a thrilled sort of way, but still terrified._

_The sound of footsteps quickly halted any progress into the kiss, and both women sprang apart and into standing positions just moments before Kennedy entered the training room. Faith was kicking herself too much to focus on Kennedy, and trusted Buffy to handle the situation as she wandered off toward the showers._

_She could feel the blonde's eyes on her back the whole way. What that meant, would come in time._

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Faith threw a leg over her Ducati, revving the engine slightly before taking off. She knew Buffy could feel her, how that worked out, Faith could never figure out, probably something to do with the whole "no two Slayers at once" rule, which was now broken a thousand times over, but that was beside the point. The point was, Buffy could feel her as well, and she would know she was coming. Faith just hoped it wouldn't be a cold welcome.


	3. Familiar Faces

Thanks to all for the reviews and the positive feedback. Here's a two chapter update for your reading pleasure.

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For the fifth time, Faith pulled the torn and crumpled slip of paper from her back pocket. It was only a few lines of print in Angel's neat handwriting, but the lack of words belied their importance. They told her she was standing at the mailbox of the correct driveway in all of Cleveland. The fact that it was a rather long and winding driveway slightly deterred Faith from restarting her bike and driving down it, since everyone would undoubtedly hear her approach. _It's been four years, and I didn't actually leave on bad terms with anyone, although B might look at that differently. But hey, there's a miniscule chance you won't be punched in the face._ Faith shook her head of her thoughts before kick starting her bike. Driving it slowly down the driveway, Faith noted how perfectly the Scooby Gang had picked this place.

_Damn, four years ago this was merely an idea._ Faith slowed to a halt as she pulled up next to a maroon Acura, the only car outside the rather large garage. Killing the engine, Faith dismounted and pulled her helmet off, shaking her long locks of hair out around her shoulders. Detaching the belts holding her duffel bag to her Ducati, Faith slung it over one shoulder and strode towards the door. Just as she reached out to press the doorbell, the door swung open, revealing the younger of the two Summers girls.

"Faith, it's great to see you," Dawn's initial surprise gave way to a soft smile before pulling the door open further in a silent invitation.

"Hey Brat, look at you, all grown up," Faith smirked before moving in past her and dropping her bag to the floor.

"A lot can happen in four years," The tone was tinged with sadness, possibly even anger, but Faith recognized Xander's voice from the next room easily.

"Hey Xand, how's it hanging?" Faith smiled up at him before he moved forward and embraced her gently.

Faith felt a quick moment of panic, but relaxed into the hug, glad that he wasn't resentful of her abrupt exit last time. As he pulled away, Faith felt an arm slide around her shoulders, pulling her close. Faith turned her head to see a grinning Kennedy looking up at her.

"Hey you," Kennedy tilted her head to one side before pulling her into a hug. _Wow, I get hugs this time, big improvement._

Pulling out of the hug, Faith allowed her gaze to move around what was apparently the living room, and quickly scanned the faces of a few of the original potentials, and a few faces she didn't recognize. A voice off to her left caused her to turn and quirk an eyebrow, as was custom.

"Welcome back," Willow smiled over at her from where she was leaning on the doorframe which led to some other room, "I could feel a Slayer approaching, but I wasn't sure if it was you."

"Where's everyone else?" Faith glanced around quickly before focusing back on Willow, who appeared to be in charge.

Willow shifted her gaze to some of the younger girls in the room, "Why don't you all go on up and get ready for bed? I'll give everyone proper introductions tomorrow."

Faith watched as a small crowd of girls left the room, causing it to become almost vacant, save for the only people she knew. Kennedy moved over towards where Willow stood and Dawn took a seat next to Xander on the couch just as Andrew wandered into the room with a cup of tea in his hand. Faith smirked at him; he apparently hadn't changed at all. Vi and Rona were both standing across the room, enjoying the jump Andrew made at seeing the rogue slayer.

"Wow, same old crew, huh?" Faith ran a hand absently through her hair before looking back at Willow.

"A lot of stuff has gone on since you left, Faith, and while I really want to get into details with you right now, I'll give you a rundown because I know exactly what you want to do," Everyone's gazes shifted questioningly to Willow, but Faith merely smiled. _Hell's yeah. Speak later, let me find her now._

"What's the sitch Red?" Faith asked point blank, tilting her head to one side, "Big A didn't really clue me in too well when he contacted me."

"There's been something building in the last few months, we're not exactly sure what," Willow held up a hand to silence the questions Faith was about to ask, "It's not the First, but it does want to destroy the world."

"Gee, how original," Faith remarked, rolling her eyes, gaining a glare from Willow and soft laughter from Kennedy, who was silenced by Willow turning to look at her.

"Anyway, with most of the trained Slayers spread out around the world, we needed all the firepower we could get, and I heard from Angel a few days ago that he was sending someone to help, but he didn't say who. Most of us didn't even think it would be you after your abrupt exit."

"Yeah, sorry about the whole AWOL bit," Faith shrugged, she really didn't want to get into that right now, not when she was itching to slay, or find Buffy, whichever came first.

"Will, why don't you let her go, she can get the details tomorrow," Dawn watched Faith shift from foot to foot before turning to look at the redhead.

Willow nodded slightly, "Go ahead, Buffy's doing a sweep of the cemeteries within a five mile radius tonight, I'm sure you'll be able to find her," Willow allowed a knowing smile to grace her face before nodding towards the door, "We can talk tomorrow."

"Fine by me, I'll catch you all later, tons of promises to catch up," Faith allowed her gaze to settle on Kennedy, whom she had bonded with surprisingly well after destroying Sunnydale. The younger slayer nodded quickly in acknowledgement before watching Faith exit the room and then the house swiftly.

Faith pulled the door shut and let out a sigh. _That went well, I think._ Pulling her helmet back on, Faith started up her bike before turning around and driving off, allowing the tingling sensations running down her spine to guide her.


	4. Synchronized Slayers?

Two miles out, Faith pulled into a cemetery and parked her bike just inside the fence, allowing it to be hidden from any car that drove by. Taking off her helmet, Faith took in a deep breath before checking that her stake was securely attached to the holster at the bottom of her leg. She knew that Buffy probably was in this cemetery, but it was quite big, so she figured that her parking at the gate didn't clue the blonde in to her arrival. '_Cept for that feeling I'm getting, saying she's relatively nearby. Hope it doesn't distract her._

Faith strode forward, her destination unclear, merely awaiting the sounds of fighting, or the sight of a particular blonde. Some time later, Faith knew she must have covered almost half the cemetery by this point, she heard the tell tale signs of vampires. The snarling was coming from a little ways off, more towards the edge of the cemetery, near the woods. As she rounded a mausoleum, Faith saw the original Chosen One battling alone against eight vampires, not a particular fair match. Buffy was fending off four with ease, but the others were using her split concentration to slowly make their way closer to her.

Within seconds, Buffy had one dusted, and Faith moved up behind two and dusted them from behind before the rest realized they now had more than just one girl to worry about. Faith watched as Buffy threw one into a headstone before punching another vamp in the face, causing him to stumble backwards. She then let out a flurry of punches before sweeping his legs out from underneath himself, and dusting him.

Faith took on two vamps at once, a male and a female. Slamming her elbow into the male's face, Faith did a roundhouse kick on the female, sending her sprawling over a headstone. The male landed a hard kick into her side, and Faith grunted as she felt the pain shoot through her. She faintly heard the sound of a vamp being dusted, before the male pulled her into a headlock. Faith could feel her lungs screaming already, and propelled herself back into a taller gravestone, causing the male vamp to release her. Swiveling quickly, Faith plunged the stake into his heart before turning towards the forgotten female vamp as he dusted.

Faith kept a watchful eye on Buffy as she stumbled backwards from the punch to her jaw, and tried not to wince at the kick to her gut before shifting to her right and allowing the vampire's momentum to sending him flying. Moving forward towards him, Buffy did a high kick to his chin which caused him to slam into the other remaining vamp, which Faith had solidly kicked in the chest, sending her back into Buffy's vamp. It wasn't done on purpose, but Faith timed the plunge to the female's heart to match Buffy's, and the vamps dusted simultaneously, allowing dark brown eyes to look at green ones for the first time in four years.

Faith watched Buffy straighten up slightly, looking less surprised than glad, "Faith,"

"B," Faith smirked at her sister slayer.

"Glad you could drop by," Buffy glanced around, breaking the gaze Faith had leveled on her.

"Yeah, you know, I just happened to see this blonde chick about to become dinner, and thought, hey, maybe I should help her out," Faith grinned as Buffy began walking back towards the front of the cemetery, and fell in step beside her.

"You kidding me? I was totally in control of the situation back there," Faith cast a sidelong glance at Buffy, and laughed at the grin on her face, belying her serious tone.

_It can't be this easy, I know it can't be._ Faith didn't want to get her hopes up, even if all the other Scoobies were okay with her being back, she knew Buffy must still be upset, hell she had good reason to be. The pair lapsed into silence for a few minutes before Buffy spoke, this time completely serious.

"Four years Faith." _Here we go._

"I know."

"No explanation, no note, no word."

"I know."

"What the fuck happened?"

Faith stopped to look at Buffy full on, _guess I gotta be honest with her sometime, and if I ever want to even entertain the thought of being friends, the sooner I'm straight with her, the better. Just gotta take the plunge._

Faith shifted nervously, trying to find the right words. As the silence stretched on, Buffy prodded Faith with one more guilt trip, "We were becoming good friends; I thought we'd finally gotten past everything-"

Faith cut her off, not wanting the older woman to go on, needing to explain, "B, listen. I didn't leave because of you, or our friendship," _Or its' recent complexities_, Faith added in her mind, "I left because I needed to know that I could still be a white hat without anyone watching me. I needed to find out whether I could slip and fall, and realize it without anyone pointing it out. So I went to Angel," Faith stopped upon seeing the look Buffy gave her, and returned it with one of her own, "He looked out for me B, he was the only one who believed in me. Plus he had his whole redemption thing going on, so he knew what I needed. I asked if I could pay a visit to the Powers. I wanted to help people on my terms, my way, knowing I could, even on my own, help people."

Faith took a breath and pulled a cigarette out of her jacket pocket and a lighter from her jeans. After lighting it and taking a long drag, Faith exhaled slowly before taking a seat on the top of a headstone. _Damn this is hard, I wish I could explain this shit better; at least I have her full attention._ Faith looked over at the silent blonde who was currently leaning against a tall grave marker. Faith was glad that Buffy wasn't prodding her with questions, she wasn't sure she could take them at that exact moment. The minutes crawled by as Faith slowly finished her cigarette, and put it out on the top of the headstone before flicking it away.

"Anyway, so I helped out where I could, did whatever I could. I mean, yeah, I was keeping tabs on you guys, though it wasn't easy to keep track of where you all were, but I was aware of a serious slayer link moving around the world. I would check in with Angel periodically, but I didn't really want to know what was happening with you guys. I knew he'd tell me if something bad happened, or some shit like that, so I didn't really worry. Then Angel contacted me about you guys maybe needing me here. Not long after, I find myself at the front door of a massive mansion with a not so little or young Dawn standing in front of me."

Faith allowed another stretch of silence to fall between them, and turned her gaze towards the woods, staring out blankly. Buffy's quiet comment tore her back to the present, and refocused her guilt yet again,

"I thought you were happy," the pain was evident in her voice and Faith knitted her eyebrows together in concern, "I mean, weren't things just beginning to click between us?"

Faith sighed again, closing her eyes momentarily, "Yeah B. Things were good, I was happy," Faith opened her eyes to stare at her counterpart, "But I hadn't been able to fully let go of the past yet, and it would've caught up with me, and all hell would've broken loose. I didn't want to risk our friendship, which, just to remind you, was built on past betrayals and attempted murders."

Buffy winced at the reminder of when they were younger, and the pain that they had caused each other, but let Faith continue.

"So I left," Faith ended the subject with a shrug, before continuing on in another direction, "Now I'm back, and what I really would like to know, is whether we're gonna be okay, because I'll leave if you don't want me here."

Buffy reply was soft, and caused Faith to strain to here it, "Don't leave. Not again."

Faith nodded mutely, her emotions vying for control at Buffy's response, not sure which way to take it, as a comrade, a slayer, a friend, or a… _a what? We were never together. Sure, three kisses, two of which she initiated, but still. Nothing was ever written in stone. Let's not jump on that train of thought too quickly._ Finding her voice, Faith smiled softly as she spoke, "Glad to hear it, because I really need to spar, gotta get my Buffy butt-whooping skills back up to par."

Buffy looked up quickly at Faith upon hearing the word "spar," knowing the history that came with it, and smirked, "I'll kick your ass."

"Yeah, let's just see you try girlfriend," Faith winked and then stood and began to walk again, Buffy moving next to her.

"Man, you are so going down," Buffy's eyes widened the moment the words left her mouth, and a blush crept up her neck, spreading across her face as she eyed Faith, gauging her reaction.

Faith turned to look at the shorter slayer full on, and gave her a seductive once over. Licking her lips, the dark slayer commented, "Mmmm, don't go putting ideas in my head B, something might happen." _God I hope so._

Buffy smirked back at Faith, and arched her eyebrow, "That might just be my master plan."

Faith's eyes widened slightly, _holy fuck, she's gonna get me horny without even being serious._ As if on cue, Faith felt the beginnings of the hungry and hornies and cast a sidelong glance at Buffy once they resumed walking. Faith knew Buffy thought she had won, and as they approached the gate, Faith pulled her bike out of the shadows. Throwing a leg over it and sitting, Faith smirked at Buffy and, in a breathy tone, asked, "You hungry?"

Buffy's look was shocking. Faith had seen firsthand many times over that Buffy did indeed get hungry and horny, she just ignored it better, but the smoldering once over that Buffy gave her made Faith uncertain whether Buffy was taking her question seriously or if she was just playing along, like they always used to do.

"Starved," Buffy's response sent a shiver down Faith's spine. _God damn, how does she do that?_ Faith blinked, slightly taken aback, and felt relief wash over her as Buffy began to laugh before she sat down behind the dark slayer on the Ducati. _Oh this should be interesting,_ Faith thought sardonically while pulling her helmet on. As Buffy snaked her arms around her waist, a soft sigh lodged itself in her throat, shifting into a groan at the feel of the smaller slayer pressed up behind her, causing Buffy to smirk. _So much for controlling your emotions._

"Little hot under the collar Faith?" Buffy remarked with a grin, her breath tickling Faith's neck.

_If you only knew, B,_ "Naw, B, just clearing my throat," Faith knew Buffy wasn't fooled, and quickly started her bike to silence the blonde from any future comments. _Just gotta get back –preferably in one piece- and take a very long, cold shower._

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Just an extra note, I purposely wrote and switched who spoke the end lines from "Faith, Hope & Trick" between Buffy and Faith. Thought it would be fitting.


	5. Reminiscing about pool

I changed a few things from Chapter 3 to fit the original idea that Faith wasn't expected. Check it out. Thanks for the feedback, sorry for the slight wait.

PS: meetwickedfaith- Buffy did seem to take it easy, didn't she? Maybe she's not totally ok with everything, but she wants Faith to think so…

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Faith takes the two beers from the bartender after chucking some bills onto the counter and walks back to where Buffy is seated in a booth in the bar. _Yeah, so much for going straight back_. Faith places a bottle in front of Buffy and slides into the seat across from her, lifting the bottle to her lips almost instantly. Swallowing the dark beer, Faith catches Buffy watching her drink. Lowering the bottle to the tabletop, Faith watches in amusement as Buffy snaps out of her reverie and quickly looks away, focusing on the pool game in session nearby.

Faith turns to follow her gaze, and watches one of the men prepare to break. His arm flexes slightly as he pulls the stick back and hits the cue ball hard, knocking it into the side of the triangle of balls. The crack of the break causes Faith's mind to wander back into the past, to the last time she played pool against the smaller slayer.

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_Faith was itching to do some damage. She and Buffy had gone out slaying, only dusting a few vampires, and had come back to the small house, hoping to eat the need away. Three pizzas and four beers later, Buffy had chucked a pool stick at Faith, and the game had begun._

_They hadn't really brought up the first kiss. Faith had wanted Buffy to admit that it had happened, hell, have her admit anything really, even if all she admitted was that she wore socks to bed. Unfortunately, Buffy had done nothing- Faith figured it was out of fear- and in turn, Faith's nerves were wearing thin. After that kiss, despite the innocence in it, Faith had stopped trying to cure her sexual itch through others after slaying, hoping for more from the older slayer._

_Xander had asked her the other day why she was always jittery. She had laughed and explained that she'd had too much coffee that day, hoping he didn't see through the lie. Now, watching Buffy stalk her prey – a striped ball – Faith allowed her eyes to roam over her delicate looking frame, her leg twitching to an unknown beat._

_The shot was made, and the ball tapped around the pocket, settling on the edge but not falling in._

"_Fuck me," Buffy cursed, pissed about the result, but she looked at Faith, as if suddenly realizing what she said, and her mouth opened slightly upon seeing Faith's expression._

_Faith's eyes had darkened at the comment, 'If only you would let me, B,' Faith thought, unconsciously licking her lips before moving over towards the cue ball to aim her shot. Faith blinked a few times, refocusing her mind on the task at hand, instead of the blonde who was moving up behind her, looking over her shoulder, in true character, to mess up her shot. 'Fuck, she did not just breathe on my ear!' Faith hit the cue ball too fast and the shot missed the pocket completely._

_Faith stood up straight, the tension evident in her back, and spun to look Buffy in the eyes. The look of want was evident, and Faith heard, rather than felt the pool stick slip from her hand and drop with a clatter to the floor. Buffy shifted her gaze to look at the fallen stick and then flicked her gaze back up to Faith. Knowing what she wanted to do; Faith cocked her head to one side, giving Buffy an out. Buffy merely raised her chin in response._

_The next thing Buffy did was grunt softly when her back slammed into the wall, Faith's lips muffling all other sounds. Faith pressed her body up against the length of the older slayer, stifling a groan as Buffy tentatively swept her tongue along her lower lip before pulling it back into her mouth. Faith held Buffy's head to her own with one hand, while the other gripped her waist. Buffy, relaxing into the kiss, lifted her arms and tangled her hands in Faith's hair. Turning her head slightly, Faith moved her kisses down to Buffy's jaw, and shifted up to her ear, tugging on the soft lob with her teeth. Buffy moaned softly and unconsciously jolted her hips against Faith. Faith smiled into the blonde's neck, and slowly pushed her leg in between the shorter woman's two legs._

"_F-faith?"_ _Buffy's shaky question came out in a pant, trepidation lacing her voice. Faith ignored the question and nudged her thigh up into the blonde just as she bit down softly on the hollow where Buffy's neck met her shoulder. Fear forgotten, Buffy threw her head back, allowing for more access, and arched slightly into Faith._

_Another buck of the hips caused Faith to growl softly into Buffy's silky skin and quickly changed her course of action. Lifting her head from Buffy's neck, Faith trailed kisses along the soft curve of Buffy's ear and dipped her tongue into the shell before finally returning to the older slayer's mouth._

_This was not innocent or uncertain. This was demanding and assured. Faith opened her mouth and allowed just the tip of her tongue to run along Buffy's lips before biting down and sucking the blonde's lower lip into her mouth, effectively ending the kiss. A groan of appreciation made its way out of Buffy's mouth, before she slowly opened her eyes, looking up into Faith's brown ones. Faith found her voice first._

"_B, what's going on here?"_

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Faith snapped back to the present upon feeling Buffy shake her arm to get her attention.

"Huh? What?" Faith blinked, her head whipping around to look at the other slayer.

"I asked if you were okay, you seemed kinda spacey," Buffy smiled, trying to set Faith at ease.

Faith took in a deep breath and visibly relaxed, taking a long swig of her beer and leaned back into the leather cushions.

"Five by five," Faith flicked her eyes away for a moment before looking back at Buffy, "What's up?"

"Food arrived, and you didn't react. I thought something might be wrong." Buffy smirked, raising her eyebrows, her eyes dropping to the plate of mozzarella sticks and french fries on the table.

"Oh, no, I was just," Faith looked away again to the pool table where the game had finished, and back again to the food in front of her, "thinking."


	6. Walk down memory lane with Big A from LA

Sorry about the wait. I went home from college for the weekend and left the story on my computer at school, so I couldn't upload it.

To everyone who reviewed about the flashbacks: They will continue throughout the story, they will not always be in chronological order, not all will have Buffy in them, though most will be in relation to Buffy.

5by5: Yeah, I love pool. Probably the main reason I put it in the chapter, plus I had this whole sound effect idea.

Thanks to all who reviewed.

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Faith groaned as her cell phone vibrated across the nightstand next to the bed she had crashed in the night before. Rolling over quickly, Faith grabbed it and flipped it open without looking at who was calling.

"Hello?" Faith's sleep-laden voice growled into the phone.

"Morning Faith."

Faith paused a moment, her eyebrows creasing in concentration, trying to place the voice, "Angel?"

"Yeah, it's me. I just wanted to check if you made it to Cleveland yet and see how you were doing."

Faith pushed the sheets down to her waist and shifted onto her back, titling her head into the pillow before responding, "I'm five by five. The Scoobies took my sudden re-appearance well, I think Red had prepared them for someone coming, she said she felt a slayer approaching."

"And what about Buffy? How did she react?" Angel's voice was tentative, his wording careful.

"She's pretending everything's cool, but I know a big fight's brewing, not that I can stop it really," Faith shrugged and switched the phone to her right ear.

Angel sighed, "Faith, you know you should talk to her before it explodes."

"You think I don't know that? You think I want a fight?" Faith cut him off, frustration washing over her.

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"_I don't want to fight with you, it's too hard, not that it was ever easy," Buffy sighed, slumping down further into her chair._

"_Fuck B, you think I wanna fight you either? But we cannot just ignore what's going on here," Faith threw her hands up and resumed her pacing in front of the older slayer._

"_It was the heat of the moment," Buffy explained, as if trying to make herself believe it._

_Faith whipped around, and placed her hands on the armrests of Buffy's chair, leaning in close, "Yeah? Maybe it was. How do you explain the second kiss?"_

_Buffy leaning forward a bit in anger, "Do you not remember slaying beforehand?"_

"_Do you not remember leaning you body fully against my back and breathing in my ear? Was that part of the slaying hornies too?" Faith tilted her head, her eyes flicking down to Buffy's lips and back to her green eyes._

_They stared at each in silence for a moment, both testing the other, to see who broke first, who gave up ground. Suddenly, Buffy leaned forward and captured Faith's lower lip, pulling it into her mouth. Faith moaned audibly and allowed her mouth to open as she lifted a hand to Buffy's head and pulled her closer, opening her mouth and feeling the blonde slayer's velvety tongue with her own. At that point, Faith's knees gave out and she collapsed on top of Buffy, causing the blonde to moan._

_------------------- _

Faith snapped back to the present, hearing Angel saying her name sternly, "What? Sorry, I was…"

"Not paying attention?" The strain in his voice was evident- apparently he had been telling her something important.

"Sorry," Faith murmured, rubbing her eyes with her free hand.

"I was reminding you of our conversation when you left her last time, and hoping you have learned from it," Angel repeated, and again Faith felt the pull of her memory.

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"_Wolfram and Hart, this is Angel speaking," Angel held the phone to his ear, flipping through a case file on his desk. As moments ticked by and no voice spoke into the phone, Angel put the file down and leaned back in his chair, "Faith? Is that you?" Call it a gut feeling, but the big softly had a knack for knowing when she called._

_Faith leaned her head against the glass wall of the phone booth, shutting her eyes before lifting the mouthpiece to her lips, "Yeah, it's me. I'm leaving, going away to figure myself out,"_

"_You didn't have to tell me, you know, but thank you anyway. What did the others say?" Angel smiled, before becoming serious when Faith didn't respond. He heard the dark slayer shift her weight over the line and decided to try a different tack, "Did you tell anyone else you were leaving?" Angel waited, only to hear no response, and sighed, "Faith, you should have at least told Buffy."_

_Faith laughed, and the sound surprised Angel, "Yeah, tell her, because we can do that, talk to each to each about stuff, fuck."_

_Angel was silent a moment before speaking, "Did something happen?" His vampire hearing picked up Faith muttering the word 'something' and prodded more, "Faith what happened between you two?"_

"_A lot more than she was willing to handle," Faith replied cryptically._

"_What do you…oh," Angel coughed slightly, and shifted in his chair uncomfortably, "Did you two…"_

"_No! God no," Faith sighed, "Damn I wish we had though. Too bad."_

"_What makes you think that will never happen?" Angel was trying to tread carefully on the subject, and felt somehow calmer that it was Faith rather than Spike, but he had an inkling it had to do with-_

"_Because she's straight." Yeah, that was it._

"_And you aren't?"_

"_No, I am. I don't do women," Faith sighed, confused by her own feelings._

"_Unless Buffy had some surgery that I didn't know about…" Angel trailed off, somehow getting the bigger picture, "It has nothing to do with her being a woman, does it?"_

_Even with heightened hearing, Angel still had to strain to her the soft "no" that Faith whispered into the phone._

"_Then why leave?"_

_Faith was quiet, trying to find the right words, "Because I need to know me before I even try to grasp the concept of 'us.'"_

_Angel nodded, understanding, "Call me if you ever need anything."_

"_Thanks big guy, you're a great help," Faith smirked and hung up._

_------------------- _

"Ya know Angel," Faith cut in, her memory jostling her into action, "I'm sorry, but I gotta go, there's something I need to take care of."

Angel, who it seemed to Faith was getting his panties in a twist over her spacing and cutting him off again, sighed, "All right, take care of yourself Faith."

Faith smiled, "You know me…"

"Lifetime of practice?" Angel finished, "Yeah, I know. Doesn't make me stop saying it though."

"Fair enough. All right, later."

"Goodbye Faith," Faith waited to hear the dial tone after Angel hung up before closing her cell phone and placing it back on her nightstand. Sliding out of the sheets, Faith stood up and stretched her arms above her head.

Walking over to her duffle bag that she had tossed onto the floor beside the dresser, Faith heard the muffled sounds of people moving around the house. She found a black bra nada blue wife beater and pulled them on quickly before crouching down to search for a clean pair of jeans. A knock sounded at her door, distracting her from getting dressed fully and going in search of the oldest slayer in the mansion. She called out for whoever it was to come in, despite only wearing an undershirt and panties.

"Hey Faith, I…oh, sorry," Kennedy blushed slightly and turned away, preparing to leave the room.

"Ken, it's all right, just lemme pull on some jeans," Faith called out, halting the brunette's retreat. Yanking on her pants, Faith grabbed her pack of cigarettes and a lighter from her night table before cocking her head to the door, "C'mon, come out with me for a smoke and some catching up."

Kennedy smiled and led the way down the flight of stairs from the second of three floors of the mansion and walked out the back door to the patio. Sitting down on the steps to the expansive yard, Kennedy looked up at Faith, who was currently squinting in the bright morning light, watching as she stuck a cigarette into her mouth and lit it. Taking a long drag on it, Faith exhaled as she sat down.

"So, how are things?" Faith asked, cocking her head to one side, trying for glibness in the seriousness of her disappearance.

Kennedy sighed, "Just great, and you? How were your four years off?"

Faith flinched at the anger in the question and distracted herself slightly by taking another drag. Watching the smoke float off, Faith stared out towards the barn almost two acres back, "It wasn't time off. I'm surprised I'm actually still alive, after everything I've done," Faith shook her head, and shivered, feeling Buffy's presence become stronger- the blonde had woken up. _She never was an early bird before._

"I'm not gonna quiz you on why you left and what you did, that's Buffy's turf. I'm not gonna inquire to anything you may have heard about the big ol' apocalypse issues we have coming up, that's Willow's area. I'm not even gonna ask if you're okay, because Xander and Dawn and Giles will do that ten times over. What I will ask is why you couldn't even talk to me; you're supposed best-friend, before leaving in the middle of the night."

_Isn't that a "why did you leave" question?_ "I'm not good at the 'friends' thing, it's new ground for me. I was, and still am, used to being on my own, taking care of myself. Not really used to the big group hug and the 'talks' you guys are so fond of. So, I guess leaving without talking to any of you, was because of my old lifestyle. I'm changing that now. I don't want to be aloof and an outcast anymore, I want a place to call home, people to call friends, hell, even someone to call a lover," Faith sighed, yes she had changed her tune, now she had to see if everyone would accept the new Faith.

Kennedy smiled slightly, "And what happened to '"get-some-get-gone" Faith'?"

"Robin did teach me something, I cannot live the life I want to have now, and retain any of the relationship views I had last time I was here," Faith shrugged, "I think I would like to try a real relationship at least once, preferably without another loser."

"Wow, four years changed you, huh?"

"Well, three years in prison was the start… and hopefully four years on my own helped a lot," Faith put her cigarette out in the grass, wiping it back and forth before placing it beside her to throw out later, "So how are you and Willow?"

"Switching topics so soon?" Kennedy cast a playful look at Faith who merely quirked her eyebrow in response before continuing, "We're good. We have our issues, I think age can be one of them, but we work things out. I feel like I'm getting to the point where she's the only person I could see myself with for the rest of my life."

"Wow," Faith raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, don't tell her though. I don't want to freak her out," Kennedy looked over her shoulder towards the door, and then looked back at Faith.

"No worries. Seriously though, Willow is the settling down kind of girl, if you've made it four years, I doubt you won't make it forty- well, aside from having death face you nightly, that is," Faith smirked, gaining a punch to her arm from Kennedy, "So Ken, are we cool?"

Kennedy looked over at the older slayer, a smile playing at her lips, "Yeah, we're five by five."

Faith laughed, "Don't ever say that again."

"Why ever not?" Kennedy mocked shock as she stood up; her eyes watching Faith get up.

Faith pretended to think of an answer before looking down into Kennedy's eyes, "Because it's mine," Faith smiled as Kennedy laughed, and looked towards the door, seeing Buffy watching them calmly, a cup of coffee in her hand.

"Gotcha, Faithisms are to not be used by anyone other than their creator," Kennedy held her hands up in surrender, "You win."

"Damn straight, now, let's see a man about some breakfast," Faith cocked her head towards the kitchen as they entered the mansion, nodding at Buffy on the way into the dining room, following the smell of Andrew's cooking; her reason for cutting off Angel on the phone still forgotten in the back of her mind.


	7. Slayer Central

Sorry about the long wait, my Video Card died on me, so I was out of a computer for 2 weeks because I'm in college and had to wait for my dad to come up and bring it home to fix it, and then I had to go home to get it back.

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Faith chewed slowly on the omelet that Andrew had made for her.

"Damn, Andrew sure can cook. Does he do this often?"

"No. Maybe once or twice a week, but we rotate in making dinners and everyone usually has their own morning preferences, so breakfast is up to you usually. Lunch is the same, but all the young slayers are required to eat at least lunch and dinner," Willow explained over her mug of tea.

Faith nodded, her gaze flicking up to the small number of young slayers gathered in the dining room, "This seems…"

"Empty compared to what it should be?" Vi quipped, a smirk on her lips, "Yeah, we had a huge influx of slayers the first two years, but now, with the world-wide set-up, any slayer that chooses to stay closer to their home in their own country, on their own continent, can do so. It had a lot to do with age and language barriers. They can still come here, and Buffy has personally met every known and listed slayer, so they know that they have a place to come to if they want to."

"So is this the main Slayer HQ then?" Faith looked around the room at all the faces, stopping at Buffy to catch her eye.

"Yes. We have two more places in the US, but slayers are sent here after being told what they are," Buffy answered, "There is a nondisclosure agreement every new slayer must sign, as well as additional contact and background papers to fill out that allow us to keep an eye on them for safety purposes. Especially if they decide that they don't want to follow their calling and train."

"Who wouldn't want that?" Faith asked, remembering how glad she was when her first watcher told her she was different for a reason. Faith caught Xander glance quickly at Buffy before she focused back on the older slayer, who sighed heavily.

"Many, apparently. They want normal lives, and I can understand that because this calling asks a lot from you, you know that," Faith nodded, "and when you're young, or in your teens, you just want to be normal, so, we allow them that choice. It's the least we can do after thrusting these abilities onto thousands of young girls and women all over the world."

"What about their strengths and shit like that? Wouldn't an abnormally strong woman in an office job raise a few eyebrows?"

Buffy looked to Willow to explain, "Yes it would, which is why I went to the Coven in Westbury, England, and brought Giles with me to find a controlled spell which will strip you of all your abilities. There are quite a few privacy and other sorts of forms we have the women sign in order to stay under the radar, like usual."

Faith nodded, getting the bugger picture, "So, have you had any…problems?" She didn't want to say _like me_ in front of the younger girls, not sure what they knew about her, if anything.

Buffy swallowed, and a look of pain flashed across her features before nodding, but remained silent.

"Uhh, yeah. We've had some issues with about two dozen slayers. It's hard- getting to them before anything bad can happen because they don't understand what going on," Rona piped up, "Plus, not everyone around them, such as their immediate family, take it well, and we've seen some daughters forced to choose between their calling and their family- a choice that for most was very hard to make. So we brought in a child psychologist and an adult one too. Giles knew 'em and gave them a proposition to work for Buffy and him, which they quickly agreed to."

"Why so fast? I mean, this isn't a normal line of work as it is…" Faith trailed off, hoping someone would explain their monetary situation soon.

Willow squirmed in her seat, sensing Faith's inquiring would soon need to be done behind closed doors and spoke up, "One had a sibling killed by vampires and the other's daughter is a slayer. All right, we should probably move this discussion into my office," _Your office? You have a fucking office? Damn, woman._ "First though, let's get you introduced.

Faith smirked and stood with Willow, as everyone began to put their dishes either in the sink or the dishwasher. She waited for a cue to do something, and turned when Buffy touched her arm lightly and pointed to the sink, "Don't worry about the dishes, we have a rotating schedule."

Faith nodded, and after placing her plate and mug in the sink, turned to look for Willow.

"Is everyone here? Good, thanks Vi for getting the ones that were still in their rooms. It's okay, you can go back to bed after this, I know it's a Saturday, but I want to introduce you all to the only other Chosen One and the other original slayer, Faith," Faith looked at all the faces, taking in the mixed reactions and smiled softly at the quiet chorus of 'hellos'.

"Faith, let me introduce you to Gia, Kate, Jack, Cherie, Dana, Shane, Aggie, Lynn, Sammy, Jess, Britt and Tonya. I know you won't get their names immediately, but I just want you to become aware of each other. Okay everyone, that's it, go back to whatever lazy Saturday thing you were doing or planning on doing."

As the dozen girls scattered, Faith followed the group out of the kitchen and past the staircase to a set of double doors she had noticed before. Upon Willow's opening of them, Faith's jaw dropped at the cross between modernity and antiquity that this room exuded with books and technology.

"We'll be at the store getting groceries, 'k?" Vi hooked her thumb at Rona and left upon gaining a nod from Buffy.

Faith leaned against one of the three bookcases and waited. As everyone settled into the seats around the room, Andrew quietly shut the doors and moved over to the chair behind Willow and pulled it up next to her at her desk and sat down. Faith quirked an eyebrow at this but decided she'd figure everything out in time.

"So, Faith," Willow's voice caught her attention, and she shifted her gaze to the redhead, "You want the long or short story of what's happened in the last four years?"

Faith switched the leg she was leaning on and allowed her Bostonian drawl to scratch its way out, "How about the short one, I'm sure I'll hear the long version later."

"Fair enough," Willow nodded, and leaned back in her chair, "Shortly after you left, we split up, both for personal reasons and also to find all the new slayers. Kennedy and I traveled down through South America, staying extensively in Brazil, Xander went over to Africa, Buffy and Dawn went to Rome, where Dawnie finished high school, and Andrew bounced between staying with Giles and visiting Buffy. I think we stayed apart for about two years, and then we began to seriously talk about starting a school. So, us six, along with probably about 90 young slayers, convened in England, meeting up with Giles and the new Watcher's Council, and found out that the Watcher's Council was both well endowed, and their assets were in serious liquidation. To sum up, Giles was now heading an establishment that was sitting on over 2.1 billion dollars," Willow stopped, smiling at Faith's jaw dropping slightly, "Yeah, so, we decided to come back to Cleveland, seeing as it seemed that this Hellmouth here was beginning to generate some serious shit. Buffy, Xander and I went house shopping, and this place really fit the bill for size, land and seclusion. After getting furniture, and having Xander do some structural changes, we moved in and settled down. To skip forward, Dawn's in Cleveland State U as a part-time student and a watcher-in-training, Andrew's a Watcher, Xander's the head of Cleveland Construction, I'm working below Giles on the Council as a Magicks consult, and Buffy is the head of the CSS," Faith lifted an eyebrow, "Uh, The Cleveland School for Slayers, also known to the general public as The Counseling School for Strays."

Faith nodded, then felt all eyes turn towards her, "Oh, you wanna hear about me now?" Willow nodded slightly, and Xander couldn't help but cough to cover a grin, "Fought evil. Almost died. Became a champion. Nothing new really," Faith shrugged, she didn't want to explain everything to everyone all at once, it wasn't here thing. The look on Willow's face told her she wanted more, and a quiet challenge arose between the two for a moment before Willow sighed, her shoulders sagging, _I win_.

"Did you pick up on any demons or whatever talking about some trouble brewing?" Willow asked, shifting the topic to both glean some information about Faith's missing years while aiding them in their newest problem.

Faith thought for a moment, "Well, when I was in Taipei, I heard some Gincii demons hooting it up about a dimension called the Shadow Lands, and how mankind would be fucked over pretty soon. That's all."

"Gincii demons? Aren't they a passive breed?" Andrew piped up, cocking his head to one side.

"More like passive-aggressive. They didn't like a slayer on their turf, which, I might add, I was just passing through, wouldn't have bothered them anyway, I knew what they were. Sixteen stitches in the shoulder later, I netted a whole family tree of 'em," Faith shook her head at the outcome of that long night almost seven months ago.

"Well, the Shadow Lands is spot on, because that's what the Coven in Devon called me about around four this morning," Willow lifted her hand, gesturing towards Faith, glad for the input, and skipping over asking about the battle with the normally peaceful demons for the moment.

"What's the what?" Buffy shifted in her seat, leaning forward.

"A breed of demon, they're not sure yet, are planning to bring the Shadow Lands dimension into connection with our little Hellmouth. They're probably waiting for some lunar cycle or a certain date, again, we don't know yet, and the Coven was sketchy on the details of what the connection will do, but for now, things are just simmering. They did tell me that in a couple of months the demon activity is probably going to spike up, and these past few months of downtime are gonna become a lovely memory. That's basically it."

"So we've gone from knowing zilch, to knowing zilch plus names? Look, here comes square two," Xander quipped, gaining a grin from Faith.

"Well, the Hellmouth in Sunnydale always had a hard-on for May boiling points; maybe Cleveland's is the same. We could also start cross-checking any breed of demon that has a connection to this Shadow Lands dimension thing," Faith looked around the room, trying to start the ball.

Willow and Andrew both nodded, "That's what I was going to start with Andrew this afternoon," Willow replied, looking pleased. _Yeah, give me a fucking gold star. I'm not an idiot._

"All right, sounds good. I guess we're done?" Buffy looked up at Willow for confirmation, before looking around the room as everyone stood, "Let me know if you want any help or if you find anything."

Willow smiled at the blonde as she turned and left, both she and Faith getting the uncomfortable vibes the older slayer was giving off. Faith looked up at Xander as he made his way over to her.

"Hey Faith, want me to show you around?" Faith smiled at him, glad to feel welcomed in this new home, if that's what she could call it. As everyone filed out, Faith motioned for Xander to lead the way.

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This chapter was all about laying the ground work for the main storyline, don't worry, I'll start getting Buffy and Faith together, it's a slow process for both of them…


	8. Grand Tour

**Important: For those of you interested, I have drawn up the floor plans of the mansion for this story. To see them and grasp the character's movements through the mansion better, check my profile where there is a separate link for each of the three floors and the basement.**

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"So where would you like to start? The house or the backyard?" Xander stuffed his hand in his front pockets, a small grin on his face.

"How about the house? I mean, I'll probably be spending more time in here anyway," Faith shrugged.

"You say that now," Xander's grin widened, "Don't ask. You'll see what I mean. Come on; let's start with the top floor."

As they left Willow's study and moved up the stairs, Faith thought about what he said, but shook it off, "Don't you guys all live up there?"

"Yup."

"Then why show me?"

"Grand tour my dear. Everyone sees the whole house at least once. How often everyone comes all the way up here depends on several things," Xander explained.

"On what?" Faith turned to look at Xander as thy came to the top floor, _it seems the same so, whoa…that is one fucking big room._ Faith stared into the first room on her left, the door wide open, a TV playing quietly inside. "Fuck that's huge."

"Yeah, that's Willow and Kennedy's. They are the only other bedroom with a personal bathroom," Xander smiled, "In fact; I installed and re-mastered all the bathrooms in this entire house."

"Other? Who else has a private bathroom? Fuck," Faith shook her head, peeking into the room just a little more, seeing a door to the right open slightly, the visible white floor tiles leading Faith to figure that was the bathroom.

"Uhh, Buffy, actually. She has the master bedroom," Xander motioned for Faith to follow him down to the end before saying who had which room.

Once they had reached the end, Xander leaned against the wall next to the set of double doors that effectively ended the hall. Hooking a thumb over his shoulder, Xander spoke, "This is the master bedroom, Buffy's room. It has a private bathroom as well as the only private deck. Now, this first door on your right is my room, c'mon in."

Faith followed Xander into his room, her mouth opening slightly as the spaciousness of the room.

"This isn't the master suite? Wow," Faith continued looking around before her eyes landed on a pair of women's panties and a bra folded on the top of Xander's dresser, "Xander? Is there something I should know?"

Xander chuckled at Faith, "No, nothing bad, it's my girlfriend's." _Girlfriend? And here I thought he'd never get over Anya._ "She's a slayer; she's with her family for the week for her sister's birthday."

"What's her name? Or better yet, how'd you meet?"

"I don't think you ever asked this many personal questions ever before," Xander laughed, but continued before Faith could respond, "Her name is Sandra. We met at the Watcher's Council in England. She had arrived not ten minutes after we had this one time and came barging in, demanding to speak to whoever was in charge," Faith's eyebrows rose slightly, "Giles stepped forward and asked her what was wrong, and she said that she had just watched her husband get killed by a group of vampires and asked why the hell the general public wasn't being made aware of the existence of vampires and demons."

Faith smirked; _I could see that going over well with the police force. Carry both a pistol and a stake, garlic spray and pepper spray, oh that would get bulky. Not that the cops would look much bigger than they already do…_

"And you know how Giles tries to be, all calm and very careful with his word choice. He tried to explain that if everyone knew, people would be terrified of the dark, and they shouldn't be. They should just be cautious. Well, Sandra basically yelled 'bollocks' right into his face and turned to walk out, but I grabbed her sleeve to stop her because we need all the help we can get," Faith smirked, "She spun and slammed me across the room into the wall. I blacked out, but when I came too, Buffy was sitting down at a table wit her, and was calmly talking to her."

"So she was won over by B instead of Giles? Wow, points to her," Faith smiled, "So you two hit it off?"

"As friends for a long time, like two years. She was trying to get over her husband, and I had lost Anya…It wasn't easy for either of us," Faith nodded and put her hand on his shoulder, squeezing lightly, "But yeah, we eventually hit it off, and now, here we are, or I am, seeing as she isn't here right now."

"That's great Xander, really, I'm glad you've found someone after everything," Faith smiled softly.

Xander sighed, nodding his head, "So, shall we continue?"

Walking out into the hallway again, they walked back towards the stairs.

"This door on your left is Andrew's, then on the right comes the main bathroom. With the huge communal bathrooms on the second floor and the half-bath on the first floor, privacy can be lacking, so anyone can use this bathroom. Unfortunately, any guys in this place are limited to the top and bottom floor bathrooms because the communal ones are for the slayers, but you don't need to worry about that. Next on the left is Giles' room when he's around, and Dawn's is across from that. She has the best closet, as she asked me to fix hers and make it a walk-in closet."

"Damn. I bet Buffy wishes she had one," Faith laughed.

"Well, they share clothes once in a while, but Buffy is happier about her own bathroom. Anyway, you saw Willow and Kennedy's so that brings us to a close with the top floor. Down to the second."

Faith followed Xander down to the second floor, and stopped when he stopped in front of the communal bathroom entrance next to her room.

"Okay, this floor is easy, no walking. Each end of the hall has a communal bathroom and showers. There are six bedrooms that have two slayers residing in each, and you have the only extra bedroom, which is a single, used mostly for any guests or extra slayers. Next floor?"

Faith nodded and moved back to the stairs, this time in the front. When the came down to the main floor, Xander led then to the left over to where Willow's study was, and started walking down the hall.

"Now, Andrew has his study right next to Willow's and even has an adjoining door to hers for easy access when they are researching. You've seen the kitchen, the dining room and the living room, so all that is left is the half-bath at the far end here, and the little joy of ours, the stairs to the cellar in the dining room." Xander smiled, as if he had a secret that Faith would like to know.

As Faith followed Xander back into the dining room, she noticed a door in the corner she hadn't seen before, "Joy, what little joy?"

"Oh, you'll like it down here. C'mon," Xander walked down to the bottom of the stairs where they emptied out to either side of the cellar and walked to the left, "Okay, through these doors is what we have nicknamed the Trauma Ward. It's basically where anyone who is injured out slaying or training can come here to get fixed up."

"Cool," Faith peaked through the door, staring at the amount of medical supplies, "How did you…"

"We have a few slayers that are also doctors; they helped us out in the supplying department. So, down here is Willow's magicks stuff; it's basically where all her supplies for anything are kept under lock and key. Then we have my workshop," Xander pushed open the door he pointed to as he slowly circled the basement with Faith, "You break anything, tell me. I'll take care of it."

Faith nodded, impressed with the expanse of tools. As she watched Xander continue to the last door, she wondered what the smile on his face was about.

"And here, is the best part of the whole place," Xander shoved open the double doors, Faith right behind him, her mouth dropping open. _Holy shit._ _This place is huge._

Xander smiled at Faith's reaction to the sight before her, "Welcome to the Pit."

"You call this a pit? I call it a fucking shrine to all training rooms around the world. Damn."

Xander chuckled, "No, we call it the Pit because it has a sunken sparring area over there, but yeah, it is a training room."

"I think you'd be wrong that I would rather be outside than inside. This place is wicked."

"Oh, we have the same thing in the barn out back," Xander shrugged, watching Faith's head swivel to look at him.

"Another one? Why would you need two?"

"Shits and giggles?" Xander shrugged, then became serious at the expression on Faith's face, "No, it's for the serious sparring, when Buffy has the slayers do their hard-core training that might be just a bit too loud for the neighbors. It's a just-in-case room. Buffy doesn't want to draw any unwanted attention to the real goings-on here. The young slayers already have to cover up what this place is really for when they are at school; we don't want to put any other pressure on them. Come on; let's go outside, there are still a few more things to see."

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Faith stood next to Xander looking out towards the barn from the edge of the grass by the woods to the side of the house. They were at the entrance of a trail, that much was evident, _but a trail to where?_

"Okay, we own ten acres of land here. Seven of which are woods, and we're leaving it like that. Starting here is a trail that winds through the woods. Part of it is an obstacle course, part is just a trail. This entire yard is surrounded by woods for privacy and about six different protection spells that warn us of any supernatural attacks. The trail is almost two miles long, and it is used for training. Kennedy named it the Gauntlet just to scare the younger slayers," As Xander spoke, they walked along the edge of the woods, just skirting the edge, before finally coming upon a large barn set at the back of the cleared land. Xander opened one of the heavy wooden doors and allowed Faith to go in first before following her in and flicking a switch to the right on the wall, "Here is the second training room. Off to your right is a small medical area for any relatively minor injuries sustained while in here. Same set up, but no lifting equipment and more weapons. Also, in the back, through those far doors is a meditation room. Buffy and Willow are both known to frequent it. And that seems to be the end of our little tour."

Faith nodded and followed Xander out as they walked back towards the house. Upon entering, Fait excused herself to use the training room for a little while. Once she was down there, Faith fell into her Tai Chi exercises that Angel had taught her via sending books to her in prison about it. As she moved, Faith allowed her brain to settle and relaxed. Before arriving back in the states, Faith had been in Laos and before that, Taipei. However, in Laos, she had run into someone, literally, who had said something to her that she never forgot, "Slow down and keep your eyes focused or you will make it through this street as you will make it through life." Now, at that exact moment, Faith was running after a demon gang and what the women had said didn't sink in, but later, when she was showering off the nights' battles, she remembered.

That sentence had changed how she viewed both slaying and living. She no longer thought of slaying in terms of "I win, you lose" but rather to focus on the battle and not the outcome. That sentence also made her think of her life. Sure redemption was her lifestyle of choice, but that lifestyle, at that moment, changed her completely, instead of just in helping people. She no longer looked for the one night stand. She hadn't for a long time, but she didn't think about it until that moment, and it wasn't until that moment that she understood why. Buffy. The moment she had taken the blonde in fully-after staking that pesky vampire of course- that woman had changed her world. Not in the sexual way one might think, no, it was more of an "I'm no longer alone" kind of way. Sexual came later.

Much, much later. Try about five years, one prison sentence, and apparently five official averted apocalypses. Now, with only a flight of stairs and a shit load of wood separating them, Faith didn't know how long she could keep herself closed off. Emotions were a tricky thing she had learned, and Buffy didn't seem to keen on talking about their true problems from four years ago. She would focus on their "friendship" or Faith's nocturnal departure, but not on the possible reasons for her leaving, especially if it could lead back to Buffy herself. Faith knew it wasn't because Buffy couldn't accept the blame that she drove Faith away, because she knew she could, she could see it in her eyes. No, it was because Buffy still hadn't comes to terms with what they had done, as if the very idea of it was too hard for her to wrap her head around. _As if._

It was along this train of thought that Faith remembered suddenly what she had wanted to talk to Buffy about earlier this morning before Kennedy had wanted to talk with her. Finishing up her exercises, sweat lightly coating her skin, Faith suddenly could feel Buffy's presence much more strongly than before. _Fuck I was thinking too much to notice. Oh hell, a bomb could've gone off and I wouldn't have noticed._ Faith turned, her breathing normalizing and saw Buffy leaning against the wall next to the entrance to the training room, her arms crossed under her chest, watching Faith silently. Faith walked towards her, the forgotten question on her mind.

"Hey B, enjoying the show?" The cocky grin was in place, shielding all honest emotions.

Buffy grinned and shook her head, sighing; "Only you would say that, Faith, only you."

Faith decided to let her off for the moment and got straight to the point, "Hey, I have a question for you," Faith waited, and upon seeing Buffy nod for her to continue, she took a breath and plunged forward, "Can I stay here? Like, could this be my home? I mean, I know I've left you guys, and I don't have a great track record with you, but I don't need to go see the world anymore. I'm all set, and I want to, I mean I would like to be able to settle. I've never really had that, mostly because I don't count my mother, when she was alive, as family, and I would like one, and I think this place could provide that, even without blood relations. So, do you think you have room for one ex-con slayer?" Faith smiled shakily, knowing how far out on a limb she was, but hoped for the best.

Buffy swallowed, various emotions shifting across her features, "Faith," Buffy stopped, surprised at the dark slayer's admission, "We've…I've always kept a spare room for you. Just in case you ever came back. If you want it, it's yours."

"That's not what I asked, B. I asked you, if it would be all right if I lived here. Not because I wanted to, but because you want me to," Faith knew she was pushing, but she needed Buffy to say it, even if it wasn't exactly the way she wanted it.

Buffy sighed, before meeting Faith's gaze, "I would like you to stay with us Faith, because we need you." _We – nice touch._

Faith cocked her head to one side, a smirk twisting half her mouth up and moved into Buffy's personal space. Just close enough to feel the small slayer's hot breath on her damp collarbone when she opened her mouth to breathe.

"We, B? Or you?" The question was asked in a deep, husky voice, and Buffy swallowed audibly before opening her mouth to breathe again, her gaze dipping to Faith's lips before flicking back up to her brown eyes. _Gotcha._

"I don't… know what you mean," Buffy stammered, her chest rising and falling a bit quicker. _Anticipating something Blondie?_

"Mmm," Faith ticked her gaze down to Buffy's lips, and while looking at them, spoke, "I think you do," Faith's eyes flicked to Buffy's, "And when you admit that to yourself, come find me," Faith smirked again and pulled away, moving past Buffy to the doors and leaving the smaller slayer alone in the training room.

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After Faith showered, she wandered downstairs, not quite sure what she was looking for. Upon hearing familiar voices coming from Andrew's office, Faith peeked in, seeing Andrew and Dawn in the middle of a conversation- apparently about her.

"Do you think they'll get along?" Dawn asked from her position on the couch.

Andrew shrugged and leaned back further in the chair opposite Dawn, "I don't know. You know their history far better and more personally than I do. From what I've been told, they never had the greatest track record…" Andrew trailed off.

Dawn shook her head, "No, not until the last few months before she left. They were getting along great. There was definitely something else going on though."

"URST," Andrew stated.

"What the fuck is that? You know I don't speak geek as well as you," Dawn quirked an eyebrow, a smile appearing suddenly.

"You ever hear of fan fiction?" Dawn nodded, "It's a shorthand term meaning 'unresolved sexual tension'. They totally had that."

"Fuck," Dawn shook her head.

Faith decided it was her cue to enter, "No, we never did that Dawnie."

Both Dawn and Andrew jumped at Faith's sudden appearance, and Faith walked into the room fully, shutting the door behind her as she went.

"How long-" Dawn began.

"Long enough," Faith cut her off, her eyes traveling between the two.

Andrew shifted nervously and suddenly jerked up, pulling a cell phone out of his pants pocket. His face softened upon looking at the phone, and looked to the two women, "I'm sorry, it's Dan, could you guys give me some privacy?"

Dawn smiled and stood, motioning Faith to follow her out. Dawn brought Faith up to the third floor and into her room where she shut her door and motioned Faith, who was currently staring at the entertainment system, to take a seat in the desk chair. Faith sat down, watching Dawn pull off her shoes and sit on her bed.

"So, who's Dan?" Faith asked, her mind momentarily sidetracked by the reason they were now up here.

Dawn smiled, "Andrew's boyfriend. They met at a club. Oddly enough, one of Dan's sisters is a slayer, so it wasn't hard for him to grasp our lifestyle."

"Boyfriend?" Faith was stuck on that though, the last time she saw him he was straight, "When did he come out?"

Dawn thought for a moment, "Almost three years ago. We went clubbing one night, and Kennedy dragged us to a gay club. After the shock wore off, we had a ton of fun, Andrew more than the rest of us."

Faith smiled, then thought back to the grand meeting they had earlier, "How come he sat next to Willow earlier? I would think that you would if anyone."

"Oh, yeah. Usually when we do large brainstorming it's the three of us, but Andrew is a full Watcher, so he and Willow work together a lot on research," Dawn shifted when she finished, getting more comfortable, "I thought you were more of an observer? I never took you for making inquiries."

Faith smiled at that and shook her head, "Sometimes I like to know what the sitch is without guessing. Plus, how would I know about Dan if I didn't ask?" Dawn nodded in agreement, "So what about you?"

"Me?" Dawn straightened up, "Well, I'm a sophomore at Cleveland State, majoring in Classics. I'm also a watcher in training, and my boyfriend works with Giles on the Watcher's Council."

"Boyfriend eh? Nice. So who is the lucky boy?" Faith grinned.

"His name is Peter, he's 23. We met at the funeral that was held for the original men and women on the Watcher's Council before Caleb blew them all up four years ago. His father was one of the watcher's killed," Dawn trailed off, her eyes drifting away from Faith.

"I'm sorry," Faith swallowed, then decided to try a different tack, "Is there anything you would like to ask me?"

"I thought you were all avoidy of personal questions? I mean, you totally brushed off Willow today, which equals- in this place at least- you won't talk to anyone," Dawn knitted her brows together in confusion.

"Not in front of everyone I don't. I talk in one-on-ones, that way; people can't gang up on me. It's just a precaution that I've lived for too long to stop using now," Faith explained.

"Gotcha. Okay, I guess the most important question I have is if you're planning on staying now. As in not peacing in the middle of the night," Dawn looked Faith straight in the eye.

_That is your most important question? Huh, and here I thought you'd be yet another person, desiring to know what made me leave_. Faith nodded, "Yeah, I'm staying," Faith paused, "I'm surprised that was your first question."

"I know why you left," Dawn stated with a shrug, as if reading Faith's thoughts.

"But, just downstairs, it seemed as if Andrew knew more than you," Faith cocked her head to one side.

"Oh, I just wanted to see how good his powers of observation could be," Dawn shrugged, "No, I knew. Buffy never told me, not specifically at least, but she alluded to something physical going on between you two that didn't involve fighting. I think she was more afraid of the fact that it was you than the fact that it was woman, and that is why she's all sketchy right now."

"And here I thought only Willow noticed that besides me," Faith laughed surprised at Dawn's revelation.

"You think you have to a slayer or a witch to notice Buffy's attitude today? I was talking with both Xander and Andrew about it. We all pick up on shit like that, no ones thinks we do though. Normal people have the ability to read others as well." Dawn shook her head.

"Sorry Dawn. Anything else you wanna know?" Faith switched topics.

"Mmm, no not right now. Maybe later when I can think of something," Dawn smiled and stood.

Faith stood as well, "Ai'ight, thanks Dawn, you've turned out to be pretty good. You're lucky," Faith sighed and moved past the younger brunette.

"I'd like to thank Buffy for that," Dawn called out as Faith reached the door.

Faith turned her head to look back at Dawn, "So would I."


	9. Who I am & murder mystery

**Thanks for the reviews (and I apologize for the long wait)**:

missingviolet: sorry for the confusion, the only guest room in the mansion (which is on the second floor) is Faith's current room, I just didn't name it as her own, but it is the guest room/Faith's room that Buffy saved (i.e.: she didn't allow Xander to make it into a double).

avalaurent, Reaperm.d., Priscilla19, Electra126 and mythic-lionheart: thanks for the nods towards my writing and the time spent on those floor plans (took a really long time btw).

Also: to set this up a bit, I read Go Ask Malice before beginning this fic, and have come up with Faith's age according to that book (I am also basing her history on the book). The timeframe for this story begins sometime in September 2007.

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Faith stood outside Willow's study, and knocked on the single open door. Hearing Willow call out for her to come in, Faith entered and shut the door behind her before dragging a chair from the wall, placing in front of Willow's desk, and sitting down. Once Faith was settled, Willow began.

"So, it's been a week, what do you think of the place?"

Faith smiled softly, "I like it here. I feel very…welcome. Which is something I'm not entirely used to, but I like it."

"That's good to hear. Do you mind if I ask how Buffy's been treating you?" Willow rested her chin on her hand, getting comfortable.

"Nah," Faith shrugged, "She's been good. I actually gotta hand it to B for being so fucking civil. I mean, I was afraid that after my last exit…" Faith trailed off.

"You thought she'd hate you?" Faith nodded, "I think Buffy's way too confused about how she feels about you to actually hate you right now."

Faith blinked, surprised, "Is it that-"

"Obvious? Oh yeah," Willow leaned back in her chair and laughed, "Man, you used to be such the enigma to us, and now, wow, I think Buffy can be pretty blind sometimes because she simply isn't seeing what the rest of us see."

"Us? You mean everyone is aware of…wait, what do you know?" Faith furrowed her brow in confusion.

Willow shrugged, "That there is so much sexual tension between the two of you that a Russian radio frequency would pick it up," Willow smiled, "Are you ever going to actually talk to her about it?"

Faith titled her head to one side and arched her eyebrow, "This is B we're talking about. If she isn't ready to admit it, she'll fight against it."

"Yeah, but it has been four years, and obviously you both still feel something, maybe you should find a way to help her define what she's feeling?"

"You're the best friend, why don't you? What makes you think that little ol' ex-con Faith will get B to talk about her feelings?" Faith laughed when she finished, leaning back in her chair.

Willow was quiet a moment, thinking over her reply. Leaning forward and placing her elbows on the desk, Willow clasped her hands together and rested her chin on them before speaking, "But you can relate to her on a level that neither Xander nor I ever could."

Faith was silent, not sure how to respond. A few minutes passed in silence before Faith decided to try a different topic, "Where'd Robin go?"

"Robin Wood?" Willow asked, and off Faith's nod, continued, "He's in Albany, New York. He's the principal of a high school there, as well as in charge of a very large private hotel where slayers from the Northeast are brought before being sent here. I think he likes not being on a Hellmouth, but found it hard to be around us after you two split, and thought he had no other reason to stay after you left. The problem was, he didn't want complete out, so Buffy arranged for him to care for the well-being of slayers before we can get to them."

Faith nodded, "Sounds good."

"Faith, do you mind if I ask you what you've done over the past four years? For curiosity?"

Faith shifted slightly, "Sure, I mean, it's not like it needs to be a secret or anything," Faith paused, "After I went to Angel and spoke with the Powers, I went up to Canada and shifted around there for a few months. Over the last four years I moved from Canada to the UK to most of the countries in Europe, skimmed a bit of the top of Africa, jumped up to Russia, then Mongolia, and moved over Japan, Laos, South Korea, and eventually jumped to Taipei before coming back."

"Wow, worldly," Willow's eyebrows were raised in surprise, "So you were, fighting demons, and averting apocalypses…on your own?"

"Umm, not exactly. I had some contacts via Angel in most of the countries, particularly the ones where I ended up stopping the 3 apocalypses that were to take place, so I wasn't usually alone. I always had someone to point me in the right direction, usually what I was there for was something akin to the smother effect. I would come in, kill off or fragment beyond repair demon or vampire clans to stop whatever particularly large uprising was happening or about to happen. I could never stay long enough to make things fully settled which really sucked, but the whole point of traveling was not to become attached and to learn to do what I could with whatever I had in relation to slaying. I needed to prove to myself that I was a good guy who didn't need others to make sure she didn't mess up. I needed to trust myself first before I could allow you guys to learn to trust me again."

"But Faith," Willow cut in once Faith had finished her sentence, "We already trusted you again, what was the point?"

Faith sighed heavily, "I wasn't ready though, for everyone to move past the things I had done to them. It wasn't okay for _me_."

Willow leaned back again in her chair, "Okay, I understand, sorry," Faith waved her hand, dismissing the apology, "I guess all I can say is that I'm glad you're here, because we could really use all the fully experienced slayers that we can get, and I think, whether you know it or not, your presence, while skewing Buffy's world, soothes her more than she'd like to admit. You're her original sister slayer, and I don't think anyone, not even the new generation of slayers, can help her in the ways of slaying and coping the way you can, remember that," Willow finished, winking slightly at Faith, who took this as her cue to leave, and stood and left.

After Faith left Willow's study, she moved down the hall, and decided to see what the younger slayers were up to, and headed downstairs. As she pushed open the doors, Faith's eyes widened, seeing the slayers spread out throughout the room, a small group taking turns to spar, two lifting weights with Vi's help, a few doing short sprints, and the youngest being helped by Kennedy at the punching bag. Faith scanned the crowd and saw Rona keeping a close eye on the sparring circle, correcting errors and giving praise for a good move, but for the most part, remaining a spectator. Grinning to herself, Faith leaned against the wall, taking them all in.

It was about ten minutes before Kennedy spotted Faith leaning on the wall and gestured for her to come over. The younger slayers had all taken a break to rest and get something to drink, and Kennedy had them sit down before eyeing Faith.

"Faith, would you like to tell the girls about yourself? We've been getting questions nonstop and I think they're too afraid to ask you yourself. They're done with their workout for the day anyway, so if you would like…" Kennedy trailed off, gesturing to the sitting crowd.

Faith arched an eyebrow at Kennedy for a moment before taking a deep breath and moving in front of the group. Faith was silent a moment, gauging how to open, and upon seeing the curiosity in all the young slayers' eyes, nodded to herself and began. _The hard truth is always worse, but easier to understand than lying, I hope._

"I didn't come from a good home. My dad was put in prison when I was young, and my mother was a drunk. When I was 16 I ran from my home and moved around a bit on my own. I won't scare you with the details, but after being put into an asylum, my first watcher found me and began training me. I was called shortly thereafter, and began slaying…" Faith trailed off, thinking about her watcher being murdered, "And then a big named vamp decided to screw my life up again. He tortured and killed my watcher, and I killed most of his followers, but not him. I thought I had, but I hadn't.

"And that's when I began running. I ran across the country, and as I did, I learned that he was still alive and out for my blood. So I ran to this little town called Sunnydale in California where my watcher had told me another slayer lived. Buffy," Faith stopped again, allowing the memories to wash over her as her past began to take a darker turn, "The vampire caught up with me though, and I finally did kill him. After that, I kinda settled into working with Buffy, but I guess I never felt truly welcomed," Faith paused and swallowed, "One night I made a mistake, I accidentally killed a man while out slaying with Buffy, and I know now that it can happen, but that doesn't make it okay. I freaked, and made another mistake, I went to the bad guys for acceptance when I felt like I had none with Buffy and the Scooby Gang. Things happened, fights went down, more people were killed…" Faith shifted, closing her eyes for a moment, "And then I hit rock bottom. Angel helped me find myself, and in the end I turned myself in to the police.

"I was in there for 3 years before Angel's coworkers broke me out and eventually fixed my prison record. I returned to Sunnydale, helped avert the big apocalypse, and eventually split again to go off on my own," Faith saw how captivated the group was, and held back a smile as she finished, "I left for about four years, traveling the world, finding myself, helping people, and then I got word to come here, so here I am."

The room was quiet before Vi piped up, "Quite the nutshell."

Faith smiled, and saw the group visibly relax at the comment, "Any questions?" Faith asked, raising her eyebrows and remaining as relaxed as possible so as to not scare off any of the girls.

One of the youngest girls raised her hand. The girl had short, dirty-blonde hair that stopped at her neck, and Faith struggled to remember her name, _Lynn?_ Faith nodded towards her, "What's your name?"

"Lynn," _Score, two points for the old slayer_, "I was wondering what happened between you and Buffy?" _Damn, the complicated questions._

Faith looked to Kennedy for help, but she merely shrugged her shoulders, "We didn't…mesh. Our views were very different in the realm of living and slaying. I think it was more of my fault that we didn't work things out from the start, but I think I needed to grow up before I could easily work with her. We're practically complete opposites, so we banged heads often," Faith was quiet for a moment, "Anyone else?"

No hands went up, seemingly satisfied, but Faith had the feeling she would be sought out when there wasn't a crowd. Taking a deep breath, Faith smiled gently and turned toward Kennedy, Vi and Rona, "All right, I'm out. I'll see you guys later."

As Faith waved to the younger slayers sitting on the floor, Vi cleared her throat, "Guys you can go up now," The crowd stood and quickly moved past the older women, quietly murmuring to themselves, "Faith? Can I talk with you?"

Faith shrugged as she watched Rona and Kennedy follow the other slayers out and turned to look at Vi, "Sure. Now?" Off of Vi's nod, "Okay. Shoot."

"It's mostly filler shit. Just-so-you-know kind of information. The second mansion that Buffy and Giles bought is about two miles away, Rona and I live there, as well as any of the extra slayers, and the psychologists work from there. Buffy makes trips to visit the slayers when there are some there, but it's empty right now."

"So you and Rona are good friends I take it?" Faith smiled.

"Yes, pretty much best friends. We're both in college as part-time students," Vi smiled softly.

"No boyfriends?" Faith grinned, causing Vi's smile to widen.

"No, not right now, too much is going on. Actually, aside from Xander, no one has really dated since you left so no missed drama." Vi laughed.

Faith felt as if Vi's comment had a subtle undertone relating to Buffy, and decided to call her on it, "Why tell me about Buffy, Vi? Do you know as well?"

Vi's smile vanished and she turned red, "We all know, except for the younger slayers. Even without Buffy talking, the rumor mill spread and everyone figured it out," Vi shifted nervously.

"Okay, so you are just trying to let me know that she didn't date any guys because…"

"Not just men, she didn't date any men or women. We figured it had to do with you; you must've thrown her for a hell of a loop for her to remain dateless for four years and not become bitchy."

Faith laughed, "Yeah I guess," A comfortable silence came between them for a few minutes before Faith jerked her thumb towards the door, "C'mon, let's get outta here if you're done."

Vi nodded and they exited the training room.

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As Faith moved the kettle off of the burner, and the room became quiet again, she heard the front door shut softly. She couldn't sense Buffy, or any type of demon, and was left confused. Shrugging, Faith moved through the kitchen and began to make a pot of tea that a few of the inhabitants of the mansion would readily want. The creak of a footstep outside the kitchen caused Faith to look up from the island where she placed the pot of tea, and found her eyes on a beautiful brunette.

"Who are you?" The woman asked, a British accent curving around her words.

_You must be Sandra_. "I'm Faith," Faith answered, remaining calm after seeing the other woman tense up.

"Is it tea time yet?" Andrew poked his head in through the side door, and after seeing the pot ready, moved into the room. As he went to the cupboard to get a mug, he noticed the other woman at the doorway, "Oh, Sandra, welcome back! Xander's still at work, but hey, we've got tea!"

Sandra smiled, "So much for an introduction I guess," Faith smiled back upon seeing Sandra relax, "I'm Sandra, in case you didn't get it," Sandra added with a wink.

Faith nodded, "Nice to meet you," Faith turned towards Andrew who was pouring himself a mug of tea, and shook her head before going to the fridge and getting the milk out. Andrew went back to the cupboard and grabbed four more mugs and placed them on the island before grabbing the sugar, "Want a mug?" Faith asked, placing the milk on the island.

"That would be splendid," Sandra sighed and came into the kitchen fully.

Quietly, the three made their cups of tea, and just as they moved out to the dining room, Willow entered the kitchen, "Oh tea! Thank God, I was going insane in there. Oh, hey Sandra, nice to see you back."

"Likewise Willow. What was so horrid?" Sandra smiled as she took a seat at the dining table.

"Oh, long-distance phone calls to Giles, research, and filing," Willow shrugged, sighing as she finished making her tea and walked over to the table, sitting beside Andrew.

"Filing, sounds intense," Faith commented, gaining a laugh from Sandra and a glare from Willow, coughing, Faith continued, "I mean…there is no way to salvage that. Screw it."

Willow's look softened and she sighed, "It's hectic. It would be wonderful if every culture and text called the same dimensions the same names and such, but…"

"Oh that would be far too easy, luv," Sandra cut in, putting a hand on Willow's arm, "Demons and the such live for making our lives complicated, especially when it comes to research."

"Yeah, the fighting and apocalypses are just added bonuses," Faith continued, enjoying seeing that Xander could definitely pick the right personality for someone to become a Scooby.

As the group shared grins and laughter, the front door opened and slammed. Willow and Andrew turned around, while Faith and Sandra looked up, their eyes watching the entrance to the dining room. Moments passed before Xander appeared.

"We have a problem, Will. Do you know where Buffy- Sandra! I thought you were coming back tomorrow?" Xander moved forward and hugged Sandra as she stood from her chair, "Oh it's so good to see you," Xander smiled, and lightly kissed her on the lips before turning back to Willow.

"What's going on Xander?" Willow asked.

"I heard from some of my workers today that there have been a large number of murders going on down by Lucky's Pub. It's been recent, and it's been nasty. Something non-human, possibly a gang of demons or vampires. They follow a pattern, and it seems to be culminating into something big."

"Okay," Willow stood, shifting into work mode, "Andrew, call Buffy's cell, tell her to get here as soon as she can, then go find Kennedy, Vi and Rona and call them into my study, Xander and Faith come with me. Sandra, you can either come with us, or put your stuff into Xander's room and come down."

Sandra nodded quickly and followed Andrew out of the room. Faith stood and followed Willow and Xander into her study. Once they were there and sitting, Willow pulled a large white board into the room from Andrew's study and turned to Xander, "Now I need you to tell me everything."

Andrew entered just as Xander opened his mouth, and Willow shifted her gaze up.

"She's at the supermarket. She'll be here in twenty minutes," Willow nodded and turned to look down at Xander while Andrew took a seat.

"I don't know all the facts, maybe the paper will tell you more, but the guys at work said roughly a dozen or more women have been found mutilated and drained of blood around Lucky's. Not bitten like a vampire though, but it doesn't rule it out," Willow nodded in agreement, "Their bodies were all set up in different positions, but it looked religious or purposefully done, not just randomly thrown about. I think it's been happening over the last two weeks, but nothing's really been making a big deal until this week. That's basically all I know."

"Okay, Andrew, check the paper, the morgue, find out what you can. I'll call around to local contacts; try to pinpoint what breed of demon or gang of vampire it could be. Xander, take Sandra and check out around Lucky's. Ask around; see what you can learn. Faith, I want you to wait until Buffy gets here, because you, Vi, Kennedy and Rona are taking the slayers out tonight for patrol. Quadrant three only."

As the group scattered, Faith stood and moved towards Willow's desk, "Quadrant three? What the fuck is that?"

Willow looked up, "Oh, sorry, I forgot you didn't know. Quadrant three is the northwest corner of our main sweep. It's near Lucky's pub, but not quite city, it's a suburban area with cemeteries and parks."

Faith nodded, "Okay, got it," Faith turned to leave.

"Oh and Faith?" Willow looked up, as Faith turned around to look at her, "it'll be a lot like back in Sunnydale, training the younger girls in real situations, keep an eye on them and pull them out if it gets dangerous."

"All right, no worries," Faith nodded and left, _this could be entertaining, too bad Spike isn't here; he'd get a kick outta this._


	10. Lucky's Pub

I swear, I haven't abandoned this. Lack of ideas… and motivation…

And yes, I did those floor plans on my own.

I'm apologizing in advance: Updates will be infrequent due to school. I'll do my best to update as often as possible.

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Faith leaned forward on the sofa, her elbows on her knees, one leg bouncing up and down to relieve tension. _I hate waiting. Who woulda thought anyone would be impatient for the night to come on, considering how dangerous it is out there?_ Waiting wasn't something she did regularly, but, as with making plans, patience forced its way into her life. Sighing, Faith stopped her incessant leg jitters, and leaned back into the sofa, her eyes catching Rona's as the younger woman looked up suddenly. Faith turned to follow her line of sight, and saw Buffy standing in the middle of the doorway of the living room.

"Why don't you guys go get prepared? We can leave in about 15 minutes," Buffy smiled softly at the group and exited.

As the other woman stood and moved towards the basement door, Faith followed Buffy out of the room towards the stairwell to the second floor.

"Hey, B," Faith called out as the blonde reached the stairs. Seeing her stop and turn to face her, Faith continued, "You want separate vehicles?"

"You can if you want; I was going to take the SUV out so we could fit. Plus it has a good med pack inside," Buffy replied.

"Ah, sounds good, then. I just didn't know if…" Faith trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.

"If I wanted you to be in the same car as the rest of us? Why wouldn't I want that?" Buffy finished for her, shaking her head in confusion.

"I-" _shit_, "I dunno. Never mind, B. I'll make sure the wannabes are all ready," Faith smirked, needing to get away before she embarrassed herself too much.

"They aren't wannabes anymore, Faith. They're the real thing, just like us," Buffy gently corrected, looking slightly deflated at Faith's attempt to get away.

"No, not like us," Faith shook her head, and began to back up, "We were Chosen. There's a difference."

Faith turned on her heel quickly and left, feeling Buffy watch her as she moved through the kitchen and dining room before she disappeared down the stairwell to the basement. When she entered the training room, Faith saw the four other women shuffling around, checking out weapons. As she made her way up to them, they watched her, as if wanting to see what she would choose before picking their own weapons. Faith smirked, catching Kennedy's sheepish grin as she pulled a stake out of the trunk beside the wall adorned with all types of weaponry, and lifted a short knife from it's place upon the wall. Seeing the quizzical looks the others gave her, she shrugged and answered,

"Just in case," and turned and left.

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Buffy was yanking one sleeve of her jean jacket on when Faith entered the side hallway next to the exit into the garage. Smiling softly at the older slayer, Faith moved behind her and grabbed the jacket, aiding her in pulling the other sleeve on.

"Thanks," Buffy whispered, quietly acknowledging Faith's kind act, watching as she reached for her own jean jacket and pulled it on both arms in a smooth action before fixing her hair and straightening the lapels.

"No problem, B," Faith nodded appreciatively, before opening the door to her right and exiting, Buffy right behind her.

Faith watched Vi step into the back of the silver SUV, shutting the door after she sat down, cutting off Faith's view of Sandra rolling her eyes at something Kennedy said. Upon opening the passenger door, she heard the four women laughing at whatever Kennedy had said. Pulling her seatbelt across herself, Faith glanced over to the driver's side door as Buffy pulled it open and climbed into the driver's seat.

"So B, who'd you bribe to get a driver's license?" Faith joked, earning grins from the other four slayers, but a glare from the eldest one.

"Funny," Buffy shook her head, starting the vehicle.

"Occasionally," Faith shrugged, smirking as she looked out her rearview mirror.

"Just occasionally? What are you the rest of the time?" Rona piped up from behind Buffy.

Faith turned to look back at her, a serious look on her face, "Sarcastic."

"There's a difference?" Vi asked, cocking her head to one side, earning laughter from the entire group, "What? What'd I say?"

"Oh God, someone make her stop," Sandra said from the back between laughing.

"She's always asking such serious questions about the…umm, how do I put this delicately…the stupidest things," Rona explained to Faith.

"Aren't you like, an A student in college?" Faith asked, turning to look at Vi.

"Yeah…" Vi trailed off, still slightly confused.

Faith nodded, shaking her head as she turned back around to face the road, glancing at Buffy, who was grinning and shaking her own head as she came to a stoplight. The rest of the ride was relatively silent, with Faith glancing over at Buffy occasionally, slightly shocked at the great improvement in her driving abilities since she had last driven with her.

--------------------------

"_B, you sure you don't want me to drive?" Faith asked, one hand gripping the armrest to the point of bending it slightly, the other pressed against the dashboard to stay in place while Buffy took a right turn at about 40 miles per hour, the tires squealing as she just barely made it around the curve._

"_I'm fine," Buffy replied stoically. Faith snorted at the response, gaining a glare from the blonde._

_It had been only a few hours ago that they had kissed for the third time, and Faith's mind was racing. Her body was humming from being in such close proximity to the lithe blonde, but fear of surviving the car ride to the outskirts of the city far outweighed any sexual undercurrent she was feeling. Minutes passed in silence, awkwardly, Faith would like to add. Awkward wasn't a thing she and Buffy had to worry about, they were too in tune with one another to be awkward around each other. However, it seemed that the most recent…event that made up the ever expanding, wacky definition of the Chosen Two was just enough to catapult Buffy into freaking. _Wait, no, 'freaking' doesn't cover it enough. B is having an all out wiggins, _Faith thought, glancing fearfully at Buffy._

_In all honesty, after allowing her body to crumble atop Buffy's in the chair, not much more had happened- a bit more of the lip-locking action, and then Buffy had shoved her off. Faith got the feeling that Buffy was way too aware of what was happening, but had no idea how to wrap her head around it- and that's what scared the blonde the most. Faith may not have totally understood what was happening either, but sometimes, as much as she hated it, talking overruled acting, and she needed to talk._

Perfect time for us to switch the role of talker versus secretive and quiet_, Faith thought as she gripped the doorframe when they came to a screeching halt outside a cemetery._

"_Yeah B, I bet none of the vamps heard us coming," Faith quipped, earning another glare from Buffy. _Fuck, this sucks.

_Faith sighed and exited the vehicle, catching up to the smaller slayer, who had already entered the cemetery._

----------------------------

"All right, you guys know the drill," Buffy nodded at the slayers, "Pair off, Sandra and Kennedy, take the immediate area surrounding Lucky's Pub; Vi and Rona, do a one block radius outside of that, including the park. We'll take the second block radius," Buffy looked to Faith, gaining a nod of confirmation, "Do a standard sweep, check for signs of blood, fighting, debris that's been moved or would have been left behind. Call me if you find anything, and call the closest pair for back up if you need it. Everyone all set?" The group nodded, "Good. Meet back here in an hour if you don't find anything."

Faith watched as the two separate pairs turned and left, disappearing into the darkness, before turning and following Buffy in the opposite direction.

"Wow, I remember when we had to baby sit them to go patrolling," Faith shook her head in amazement as she fell into step beside Buffy.

"Yeah, sometimes I can't help remembering how different their experience was from ours," Buffy replied, her eyes looking ahead, scanning the area.

"Nice to know they don't need the Chosen Two to watch out for them," Faith shrugged.

"You left after they were already slayers, Faith, you know they didn't need us watching them," Buffy glanced at Faith, confused.

"They weren't nearly trained enough to follow orders, scan, sweep, slay, and communicate the way they are now. They didn't have a good grip on their abilities just yet, you taught them that after I left."

"Yeah, I figured with the only officially active Watcher off in England trying to straighten out our finances and technically our futures, I decided to fill in for his role and try to train them the way I had been trained. I didn't want them to follow blindly, I already knew they wouldn't just take an order without commenting on how 'General Buffy' I'm acting, and I was glad. I never fully followed orders, silently or otherwise, why should they?" Buffy shrugged, "So, yeah, they took about a year to train them to be skilled the way we are, and that includes learning the difference between challenging authority rationally, and attacking authority out of fear."

"Nice. So what is the ranking? I mean, you're obviously in charge…" Faith trailed off, glancing over at Buffy.

"There is no official rank, Faith," Buffy sighed, "Those who had the most experience, such as Giles, Willow, Xander, Myself and Dawn, took the high leadership roles. We treat all the slayers equally, and the ones trained for field combat are equal to me aside from giving orders. All slayers sit in on plans for anything big, and we welcome challenges to our ideas, some plans have changed completely from something Willow and I came up with to something that the younger ones came up with. Vi and the other second gen.s have come up with game plans often."

Faith listened silently, glad to see the changes in Buffy's leadership role, it was far more flexible and less authoritarian than back in Sunnydale. She still made the plan, but it wasn't always the agreed upon one. As they lapsed into silence, Faith heard a twig snap somewhere off to her left. Stopping suddenly, Faith sensed that they definitely weren't alone. Sparing a glance at Buffy, Faith saw her already moving to the right of the sound, silently flanking the area where it came from. Faith copied her to the left of the sound, and heard a soft growl. _Vamps._ _Don't you guys know when to run and hide?_

Just as Faith saw a looming figure move towards her, she heard Buffy kick another vampire. _How many we got here?_ Faith thought, dodging the obviously new vampire's punch. Grabbing his arm, Faith pulled him past her, sending him flying off. She registered the sound of his body hitting a tree and landing on the ground as she caught a glimpse of what was apparently the third of three vampires trying to sneak up on Buffy while she fought off the other vampire. Landing a kick to the back of his knee, Faith watched him snarl as he crumpled to the ground and swung her other leg around to slam into his face, sending him sprawling. Just as she pulled her stake out to finish him off, the first vampire landed a kick to her side, causing Faith to grunt as she stumbled into Buffy, who had just staked her vamp.

Buffy held onto Faith's arm tightly, keeping her upright long enough for her to regain her balance. Faith shook off the tingles that Buffy's touch elicited from her, and moved toward the vampire that had kicked her and landed a punch to his jaw before grabbing his hair and swinging him around and throwing him into another tree. The moment he hit the ground, Faith slammed the heel of her boot into his sternum, before lifting her stake and driving the weapon home into the vampire's chest. Faith swung around as the vampire turned to dust, and saw Buffy throw the final vampire onto a broken tree limb, dusting him without using her stake.

"Nice aim, B," Faith nodded appreciatively.

Buffy smiled, "Thanks," she said, before moving her hand to her jacket pocket when her phone went off, "Ken? Did you find something?"

Faith listened in silence as Buffy finished the quick conversation and put her phone away, "Time to motorvate?"

Buffy nodded, "Yup, Kennedy and Sandra found something. The others are already on their way over, let's go."

Faith glanced around once more before following Buffy back the way they came.

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When they arrived at Lucky's, Faith eyed the place, _Might be a good place to get a beer sometime…_ Faith thought, before seeing Vi at the entrance to the alley next to the pub. Following the younger slayer down, Faith's face scrunched up as the smell of rotting body parts wafted up to her nose.

"Fuck, what the hell is that smell?" Faith frowned, looking at Buffy.

"Decaying demon…" Buffy stated, stopping when she came upon Kennedy, "What's up?"

"We found the remains of a demon hand, not much skin left to give us color or texture for immediate analysis, but we could still find something out."

"We also found blood on the wall, both human and demon, from what I can tell, and some sort of leather fabric- possibly a piece of the garment the attacker was wearing that was ripped off," Sandra added, walking from the shadows of the end of the alley to where the group stood, "When we get back, I'll go over the cuts and lesions on the hand remains, possibly find out how it was detached from the owner. Willow can analyze the blood and hand as well and probably make a match for the demon. I can definitely find out who the human was from the sample I got."

Faith blinked, _What_ _the hell did this woman do before slaying?_

"Good, okay. Vi, did you and Rona find anything?" Buffy asked, not even noticing the shocked look on Faith's face.

"Yeah, in the park we found some evidence of a scuffle of some sort near the fence closest to Lucky's. It looked like the scuffle took place mostly on this side, and the being that was escaping, died once it got over the fence, because there's dust marks of a body hitting the ground, but no marks of getting up or crawling away," Vi informed her.

"There were also drag marks, as if the body was picked up, but that was it," Rona added, "But there was no blood or clothing or anything aside from the marks on the ground."

"Okay, I guess that's it, let's head back. Rona, you've go patrol tonight, so when we get back, you can head out," Buffy turned started moving back to the entrance to the alley, but Kennedy stopped her.

"Hey, did you guys find anything?"

Buffy turned and risked a glance at Faith, "No, we staked some vamps, but that was it."

Kennedy smirked slightly, and glanced at Faith, "Wow, productive."

"Eh, cut it out Ken," Rona slapped Kennedy's arm lightly, "It was probably a gang of 'em or something."

"Actually, it was more like three," Buffy corrected, growing red in the face.

"So wait," Kennedy asked, a grin growing on her face, "You guys had like, 20 minutes, and it took you that long to deal with three vamps?" Kennedy laughed softly, the others grinning slightly as well, "Or were you busy doing other stuff?"

"Hey, fuck off Ken," Faith cut in, silencing the group, "Let's get back and figure this shit out."

The group fell into line behind Faith, staying quiet. Faith was glad, she didn't need the younger slayers needling her and Buffy with innuendos and jokes that, while she could throw it right back at them, no trouble, Buffy wouldn't deal so well with them. She didn't want any chance of having an open conversation with the blonde ruined from teasing of the younger generation, who didn't understand just how delicate Faith's situation with Buffy was at the moment. _Maybe if I talk to Willow about it, she might get the girls to back off…_ Faith thought, her mind focused on speaking with Willow the rest of the way back to the SUV.


	11. Early Morning Coffee and Conversation

Thanks to everyone who reviewed and thanks for being so patient.  
Side note, I am well aware that this chapter will be infusing an aspect of the TV show "Bones". I like Dr. Brennan's job, so it's being pulled into this fic.

* * *

Faith shut the garage door behind her after seeing Rona off for patrol. Everyone else had already moved down to Willow's study, leaving Faith to lock up behind her. Sighing, Faith shook her coat off and hung it up on the hanger before walking down the long hallway to Willow's study. Sandra's British accent wafted it's way out of the double doors and down the hallway as Faith approached, allowing her to hear the woman cut off Kennedy, who had apparently made another comment about Buffy and her. 

"Ken, if you are supposed to be one of Faith's good friends, why not sod off already before she stops talking to you!" Faith smiled at the woman, she had spunk, and was also right.

Before anything else could be said, Faith entered, and raised an eyebrow in Kennedy's direction, gaining a guilty look from her.

"Sorry Faith, I…I'm just sorry," Kennedy apologized, and Faith could see Willow's worried face behind her relax slightly at the words.

"S'all right Ken, but it isn't me you should be apologizing to," Faith smiled, and jerked her thumb towards Buffy when Kennedy gave her a quizzical look, and the younger brunette blushed suddenly.

"Right," Kennedy turned towards Buffy, "Sorry girl."

Buffy nodded and glanced quickly at Faith before turning towards Willow, "We've got trouble."

Willow sat back down and Faith watched as the room took on a more relaxed feel before moving further inside and standing off to Buffy's left. Remaining silent, Faith listened as Vi, Kennedy and Sandra told Willow what they had found, and only paid full attention to what was being said after they had finished.

"All right, Sandra, take the human hand and do your thing, I'll call down Andrew and work with him on the demon blood, everyone else, I guess we're done for now," Willow stood again, and everyone dispersed. The redhead smiled gently when Faith remained rooted to the spot where she stood, "Faith? Something you wanna talk about?"

"Ye-ah. Though, it might've been taken care of already," Faith started, finally moving to sit on the loveseat.

"What's up?" Willow came around her desk and sat down beside the dark slayer.

"I just, I don't want the girls teasing B about 'us,' or the lack of 'us' for that matter. Kennedy kinda dug earlier, and it just pissed me off."

"You don't think Buffy can handle Kennedy and her antics? She's been dealing for four years without you, I think she can manage with you here as well," Willow smiled again.

"Red, this is me. B and I are…complicated at best, and I don't want her problems relating to me or us to get fucked up by your girl. I mean, I love Ken to death, she's a great friend, but she can push too far sometimes," Faith sighed and leaned back into the cushions, trying to relax.

"I understand," Willow nodded, leaning back herself, "I'll talk to her later. I think it's just, old habits. Four years ago you guys did shit like that, teasing and pushing the envelope. Things are different now, but I don't think she realizes that the interaction has to morph as well. I'll deal with her, don't worry. Kennedy can be very flexible."

Faith grinned, "I bet," and winked at the redhead, who, instead of blushing, cocked her head to one side and gave a devilish smile back.

"Oh you have no idea."

Faith's jaw dropped slightly, surprised at the change in character. _Holy fucking…_Faith's thoughts stopped when Willow stood, abruptly changing the topic,

"C'mon you, I have to go research demon blood. Your mission is to find a more exciting thing to do tonight than that, so off with you." Willow ushered Faith out after the brunette stood.

Faith watched Willow move down the hall, and ended up following her down to the basement, and wandered into the Trauma room after hearing quiet murmurs behind the doors. Upon entering, Faith saw Sandra look up suddenly, before continuing speaking,

"Left hand bones reveal this to be a male between 20 and 24 years old. The hand was detached at the Scaphoid bone, with part of the Lunate missing. The type of attack that would cause this had to do with torque. With some slight signs of straining on the Trapezium bone, I figure the hand was twisted clockwise, which would allow for the break of the Lunate bone. No human could have done this normally, and the type of torque required for this would mean that the man was trying to escape, when the demon grabbed hold of him and ripped his hand off. Derrick, I'm sending samples of the area by the scuffle for you to get back to me by tomorrow, as well as the Scaphoid bone for closer analysis." Faith listened in awe and a bit of confusion, suddenly realizing that Sandra was on the phone with someone.

From the phone beside the table, a British man's voice crackled through, "Will do Sandra, anything else?"

"Yeah, try to get a match for me with the blood sample that I'm sending. Give me a call when you find out anything," Sandra said her goodbyes before pressing a button on the phone and walking over to Faith, "Want something?"

Faith swallowed, suddenly realizing that she had disrupted Sandra's work, "What are you? I mean, what was your job before being a slayer?"

Sandra smiled, "I was, and still am, a forensic anthropologist," Off of Faith's blank look, "I study the bones of people we have no way of identifying through normal forensic or autopsy methods. By looking at the bones left behind, I basically learn who this individual is, or was."

"And this guy?" Faith jutted her chin in the direction of the table.

"Him? I can't visually ID him without at least a partial skull fragment, so either he's somehow still alive, or the demons got him. Either way, he didn't have long to go before he would have passed out from the blood loss, not to mention the pain," Sandra shrugged and walked back toward the examining table, "All I can do with this hand, is tell you his approximate age, whether he sustained any injuries, how it was detached and other miscellaneous things."

"Gotcha," Faith nodded, and grew quiet, watching Sandra mull about for another ten minutes before telling her good night and exiting the Trauma room for her bed.

* * *

Faith jolted awake suddenly, her dream vanishing as quickly as the desire to be outside overcame her. Stumbling out of bed, Faith grabbed her pack of cigarettes and a lighter before exiting the room and entering the bathroom. Shortly thereafter, she jogged downstairs and outside to the back porch, taking a seat on the steps before lighting up a cigarette. Taking a long drag, Faith let it out slowly, relaxing after the sudden awakening. Looking around, Faith realized is must be only about six in the morning, _God, why do my dreams always have the tendency of waking me up at such God-awful, single digit hours?_

A few minutes passed before Faith felt a pair of eyes on her. Before she could turn around to glare back at whoever it was, the door to the porch slide open and Faith heard the footfalls of the person watching her move closer. Looking up at the figure when they came upon her, Faith saw Dawn looking down at her. Faith turned back to staring out at the expanse of land before her as Dawn sat down beside her. A few moments passed in silence before Dawn spoke,

"Dude, that is gonna kill you long before the vamps get you. I mean, I know, 'slayer healing' and all that, but honestly, when are you gonna quit that shit?"

Faith snorted at Dawn's blunt statement, smiling gently before grinding the cigarette out on the cement base of the steps. Remaining quiet for a few moments, Faith thought up a reasonable answer, and turned to Dawn, "How about this: I'll quit smoking the day that B admits that what happened between the two of us wasn't just due to the after-effects of slaying."

Dawn nodded, swallowing, "Good one."

"I thought so," Faith cocked her head away and went to looking back out at the yard. The silence resumed, until the almost silent sound of a shoe scraping behind them caused Faith to turn, leaving Dawn to look over at her in confusion.

Faith saw Buffy standing in the doorway, a cup of coffee in her hand, leaning against the frame. Her eyes locked onto Faith's for a moment, the thoughts behind them indiscernible, before she flicked her gaze towards Dawn who suddenly jumped to a standing position.

"Buffy! Morning! I'm uhh; I was just talking with Faith out here…"

"I heard," Buffy replied, her voice level. Faith furrowed her brow slightly, the evenness in the blonde's tone unnerving her, "Dawn, do you think you could excuse us for a few minutes?"

The question wasn't asked with any anger, and yet Faith exchanged a worried glace with Dawn before nodding, allowing the younger brunette to leave. Faith watched silently as Buffy slid the door shut behind Dawn before walking over to her and sitting down. Faith eyed Buffy for a moment before turning to look back out at the yard, waiting for the blonde to begin.

Buffy took a sip of her coffee and swallowed before speaking, her eyes staring, unfocused, away from Faith, "It's not that I can't deal with these emotions…" Buffy trailed off, swallowing audibly, and Faith realized just how nervous she was at this moment, "It's just, I don't know how to." Buffy turned to Faith as she finished, her eyes searching the dark slayer's own pair for a flicker of understanding.

Faith furrowed her brow and broke the eye contact, before lifting her head to look back at Buffy, "So what do you want from me?"

Both women knew the question was loaded. There were far too many different responses to it, and Faith was afraid of many of them, and yet, it was still a question that would garner a response that would help make their situation even just the slightest clearer.

"I-I don't know exactly, Faith. I just know that I can't be pushed into this," Buffy replied, then sighing, "I don't even know what _this_ is!"

"B, do we have to play the definition game now? I mean, I don't know what this is either, mostly because you're the one calling the shots here."

"What? Why do I have to be Shot Girl?" Buffy suddenly gave Faith a fearful look, and Faith had to fight down a grin from appearing on her face.

"Because unlike me, you don't know what you want, nor have you experienced this before."

"Hey, I've kissed people before," Buffy scoffed.

"_Men_, B. Completely different ball game," Faith smirked.

"Wait, have you done something like this before? With women I mean," Buffy turned suddenly, a range of emotions flashing across her features.

Faith shook her head, "No. You're the only one," Faith's voice dropped as she responded, and she could feel Buffy's eyes watching her as she averted her gaze.

"Oh," Buffy shifted slightly on the steps, and put down the forgotten cup of coffee. Then, in a quieter voice, "I don't want you to think that I'm ignoring what I feel. I'm just…I'm not ready yet. I need to finish processing things."

Faith bit her lip, and against her better judgment, let a pained comment slip out, "Four years wasn't long enough?"

Buffy took a deep breath, but remained calm, which Faith was grateful for, "Well, you weren't physically here. Your presence kinda forces me to…deal. I just shoved everything that happened between us to the back of my mind, because I didn't think you would be back. I thought I had scared you off, and I blamed myself for like a year afterwards. Now though, you're here, in our house, living, breathing, eating, sleeping, existing…Only a floor below me," Buffy stopped and drew a breath before exhaling slowly, "And it's driving me insane in so many ways I can't comprehend."

Faith nodded, and sighed softly, "It's okay B. I'm not rushing. I'm anti-rush. I want you to figure things out first."

Buffy nodded, and then smiled weakly at Faith, "Thank you."

The pair were silent a moment and Faith turned to look away from the blonde as she fought the urges within her. Barely any time passed before the sliding door was thrown open, causing both Slayers to turn around at the intrusion.

"We've got results from Sandra's friend overseas and we've figured out what demon was at Lucky's. We're convening in Willow's study," Andrew panted, looking as if he'd just run around the entire house looking for the two women.

Buffy glanced at Faith for a moment before standing, the dark slayer only a half-step behind her. Upon entering the study, Faith realized that most everyone in there probably hadn't been awake very long. Sandra looked as if the phone call from Derrick had been the only reason she was awake before 8 A.M., and Xander looked half asleep. Kennedy looked equally dead, and Faith decided to plop down beside the two half-awake people on the loveseat. Even Willow, sitting behind her desk, looked disheveled. _How late did she stay up searching for demons?_ The only perky person in the room was Andrew, and Faith couldn't help thinking, _I swear to God, if he acts like a rabbit on speed, I'll kill him, prison be damned._ As Buffy shut the doors and sat on the edge of the plush chair that Dawn was sitting in, Willow began.

"Okay, I know, it's early, and I know, you don't want to be in here. But, Sandra got a call from Derrick, and thus, if she was forced awake by information for this investigation, then I feel we should all suffer."

"Aye, not fair," Xander moaned from his spot, flinching when Kennedy swatted him in the arm, "Ow, also not fair."

Faith smirked at the comment, but became serious when Willow cleared her throat for attention, "Let's start with the demon, because that is far simpler."

"Not the 'finding it' part," Andrew murmured, gaining a glare from the redhead, and a soft laugh from Kennedy.

Willow was quiet for another moment, as if waiting for someone else to say something before speaking, "Anyway…From the blood sample, I did a few tests, and ran it through the magicks database. Apparently the damage we found was from a Toalith demon."

Willow fell silent, allowing for Dawn to continue, "Toalith demons are a generally peaceful breed of demon. They only really become vicious and violent when their young or home is being attacked."

"So was that area theirs?" Buffy asked, looking down at Dawn, and then over at Andrew who began to answer her.

"No, they live in the cave system that's about two miles into the forest, which is why the scuffle marks go towards the park. They usually don't keep anything more than a one mile radius of an area to defend as their own. This is technically far out of their area."

"Could it have been some sort of spell?" Faith asked, leaning forward and resting her elbows on her knees.

Willow shrugged, "Nothing was found at the scene that indicated a spell, and there are no remnants of a potion being in the blood stream. Worst case scenario is that a more powerful group of demons threatened them into doing this. Why is something we don't know."

"The piece of leather fabric found in the alley is something that only the male members of the Toalith demons clans wear. It's a form of battle garment that is hard for them to find, so it is given only to their warriors," Dawn continued, "From the measurements that Sandra gave us about the way the human hand was taken off, the a Toalith warrior could easily have enough strength to rip off someone's hand at the wrist, so that matches as well."

The room fell silent for a moment as all the information was processed before Buffy looked over to Sandra, "So what did you find out about the scuffle scene at the fence, and the hand itself?"

"Well, Derrick came back with a match for the blood sample I gave him, as well as plenty for the scuffle," Sandra began, yawning at the end, "Excuse me, sorry. Anyway, yeah, the hand belongs to a man named Harrison Beatman, who was put on the missing persons list for Cleveland a week ago. Hair particles and clothing fabrics found at the scene of the scuffle allowed Derrick to determine that it was Beatman who landed there. Derrick figured that from the form of the impact, and the marks on the opposite side of the fence, that Beatman struggled with a demon to get over the fence after fighting his way out of the alley. Loss of blood, and exertion from the run, fighting and climb probably caused him to black out after making it over the fence, and he just collapsed there. I figure that the demon, or demons after him, just picked him up and took him after he passed out."

"Okay, I'll go out tonight with the slayers, we'll sweep the forest for any remains of this guy, and we'll move in on the Toalith demons," Buffy stated, looking around.

"Recon only Buffy, you don't want to engage them on their turf. You don't know if they weren't forced into doing this," Willow cautioned, "Check it out, and get answers, not a body count."

Buffy nodded, and stood to leave, the meeting over. Faith looked around and noticed Xander falling back asleep now that everything was done.

"C'mon you, back to bed," Sandra shook his arm, causing Xander to jump up before following her out.

Faith smiled, and then looked next to her at Kennedy- her head was back against the loveseat, mouth open, quietly snoring. _You've got to be kidding me._ Arching an eyebrow, Faith looked over at Willow and jerked her head at Kennedy.

Willow laughed, "Yeah. Quite the sleeping beauty isn't she?"

Faith laughed before standing and exiting the room, the smell of coffee calling her to the kitchen. _Coffee…the perfect way to start a day of waiting for night time to arrive. Joy._


	12. Tennis balls, tension & potatoes

Sorry about the wait, went home for week, left this at college (oops) and then I had a series of exams. :) Enjoy.

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Faith was standing in the middle of the training room, a tennis ball in her hand. Lifting her arm, she wound up and threw it full force at the wall opposite her. The soft _thwack_ of it hitting the wall and the successive rubber sounds of it bouncing back to her were all the sounds she could hear at the moment. Things were pretty quiet, actually. It had been two weeks since she and Buffy, along with the others, had gone to investigate the Toalith demons. To say it was useless was an understatement. The demons were obviously one of the weaker breeds on the demon chain of power, and something had scared them into not revealing anything or helping at all when Buffy had inquired. Oh, don't forget how they ended up conversing with them in the first place- Kennedy had sneezed, of all things- and they were caught. Nothing bad happened; these demons were just like Dawn had said, peaceful.

As Faith was thinking over the only really demonic activity that she had encountered aside from vampires recently, she heard a scream from the main floor, and left the tennis ball to bounce its way over to the arena as she ran out of the room and up the stairs. Entering the long hall, she saw Buffy yanking a guilty-looking Andrew into view from the entrance hallway, and Willow backing up to allow what looked like a Toalith demon female further into the house. Beckoning, Willow led the Toalith demon into her study where Faith quickly followed Buffy in before the doors were shut on the group of people who had heard the scream. As she focused on the female Toalith in front of her, she faintly heard Dawn teasing Andrew behind the doors about his "manly" scream. Ignoring the sounds behind the doors, Faith looked at the Toalith who stood in front of the loveseat, and began addressing Buffy and Willow almost immediately.

"I have come at the risk of my entire clan. They do not know that I am here, but I must tell you, in the hope that all the suffering may end," The demon fell silent as Willow spoke.

"Suffering? Who's making your clan suffer?"

"The Kartuk. They bully us so-called 'lesser' demons into doing their jobs for them, allowing for the danger to be directed away from them. They do this to allow for their main purpose to occur."

"And what is that?" Buffy asked, her arms folded across her chest.

"The apocalypse," The Toalith replied, sounding surprised that Buffy wouldn't know. "I must take leave, if my clan notices my absence, punishment will be given accordingly."

Willow nodded curtly and smiled reassuringly before flicking her gaze to Faith, who opened the doors and allowed the passive demon to exit the room and quickly leave the house.

Sighing, Buffy turned to Willow, "What kinds of events must be set into motion to allow for these Kartuk demons to bring about an apocalypse?"

Willow shook her head, "I'm not familiar, I'll have to research it. I'll put Dawn on the web and Andrew and I will look through our texts. Get back to you in an hour?"

Buffy nodded, and left the room, her eyes briefly flicking to meet Faith's gaze before continuing past. Faith exhaled slowly and, after sparing a sympathetic glance at Willow, retreated back down to the training room. She heard the door open behind her as she retrieved the tennis ball from the floor, and turned to see Xander standing a little ways inside the room.

"Hey," Faith allowed a small smile to appear briefly, eyeing Xander as he moved closer.

"Hey," Xander replied. "I think I'm the only one you haven't had an in-depth conversation with yet aside from Andrew, and he doesn't really count."

Faith shifted and smirked, but remained silent.

"There's a lot of history between you and the original Scoobies, and while I can't forget it, no matter how long it's been, time changes people," Xander sighed, and Faith took in a deep breath, feeling the guilt wash over her. "It's been what, almost eight years since, well," _Please don't say it._ "Everything…" _Xan-man learned tact. Thank God. _"And moving past it wasn't easy, but I've come to the point where I can respect you beyond the past events because of the courage you have exhibited over facing so many demons of the non-literal kind." _And he learned new words._ "So…yeah." _Maybe not so much._

Xander bit his lip after he finished, and nodded before turning to leave.

"Thank you," The words left her mouth before she knew it.

Xander stopped and turned around, a quizzical look on his face, "For what?"

Faith was silent a moment before swallowing and opening her mouth to speak, "For forgiving me."

Xander smiled, "What can I say, you get older, and holding a grudge seems petty in relation to the world ending. See you upstairs for dinner in a bit."

Faith allowed a half smile to appear as he left, and then turned to start throwing the tennis ball against the wall again, this time much harder than before. Xander's short talk had caused guilt-filled memories to bubble back up to the surface. The calm exterior that she had worked so hard to master and control was struggling under the barrage of emotions Xander had inadvertently activated. Winding up her arm, Faith let the tennis ball fly and heard the sound of it making painful contact with the wall before it quickly returned to her. Sighing, she dropped the ball, trying to get a handle on her emotions, _Gotta_ _keep control._

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_Faith was crouched on the edge of the roof of the building, rain pouring down on her, slipping down the collar of her jacket, causing a shiver to run up her spine. She had been waiting nearly an hour for the vampire meeting to assemble. _It was going to happen tonight, where the fuck are they? _Faith had been in Taipei for about three months, and it appeared that the vampires made a killing on survival by groups, but lacked the smarts that were necessary to go with it. Sensing a few approaching, Faith ran her hand through her hair and pulled it into a tight ponytail before pulling a pair of night vision goggles out of the knapsack next to her. She had been watching this group of vampires for two weeks, and this was obviously their hideout. Every night, the same place, and roughly the same time. Seeing about a half-dozen go in, Faith shifted her weight slightly, knowing this would be about a twenty minute process of arrivals._

_Moving away from the edge, Faith pulled out a nice bow and a single arrow with a clothed point. Keeping the cloth under the knapsack to stay dry, Faith moved back to the edge, sensing more arrivals. Lifting the goggles, she watched as another small group entered the building. The sound of gravel crunching behind her caused Faith to move back again from the edge and whip around, hands lifted into a ready-stance._

"_Whoa, just me Faith, calm down!"_

"_Jay, what the fuck are you doing here?" Faith relaxed, casting a quick glance down into the streets below. "I told you to stay back at the shelter!"_

"_How often do I listen to orders?" Faith winced at the loudness of his voice,_ it could easily alert the vamps, and this would all be for nothing.

"_Jay," Faith whispered harshly. "Be quiet, they'll hear you."_

_Jay laughed softly, a glint in his eyes, _Oh, you fucker, _Faith thought, suddenly realizing his reason for being here._

"_Why fight them Faith? They'll win out in the end anyway. Not that someone like you could ever slay enough to make up for everything that you've done," Jay shrugged, grinning._

_It was less than a second before Faith's fist connected with his jaw, sending him sprawling backward. She was on him in a second, anger boiling through her veins, "Listen you little rat, I could easily throw you off this fucking building, and let you be fish food, but your scumbag life is worth even less than a hearty meal for those bloodsuckers," Faith saw the fear in his eyes, and felt the sick grin curl up on her lips, "Instead, I'm going to ask you to deliver a message for me."_

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_Thirty minutes later, Faith watched calmly from the rooftop, the bow pulled taut, and the arrow lit and ready to fly, as Jay stumbled up to the only entrance and exit from the vampire's lair- again, not that bright. Shoving open the door Jay ran inside and Faith let the arrow go. It sailed right through the open door and embedded itself in the floor, immediately setting it alight. Faith smirked, glad the vampires hadn't noticed the smell of the gas she had carefully put around the inside of the building. It _was _next door to a shut down gas station, and the inside had already reeked of gas beforehand. Hearing the screams of the vampires, Faith watched as Jay ran out and shut the door behind him, yelling as he tried to put out the fire on his arm._

_As soon as his arm was no longer on fire, Faith turned and backed away from the edge, allowing the anger and betrayal within her to calm itself, and the guilt of not keeping control of herself started to bubble up. Shaking her head, Faith sighed, _four years going solo on the road to redemption, and I'm still losing control of my emotions, fuck.

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Faith heard the multitude of voices coming from the kitchen and dining room as she mounted the stairs. Entering the dining room, she was greeted by several of the younger slayers and smiled gently in response, watching as they moved to the high tables and began to eat. Faith's eyes flicked to Kennedy as the younger brunette brought out two bowls of salad.

"Can you go grab the third salad bowl and give it to the mongrels?" Faith grinned at the request, and quickly moved into action, making her way through the crowded kitchen to the island. Eyeing the stack of small salad bowls beside the large salad, Faith grabbed them as well and exited into the dining room.

Placing the salad on the closest table, Faith counted out enough bowls for each of the three tables before plopping down at the corner of the main dining table. As people filed in, the last of the food was brought out to the dining room, and everyone began to take their seats. Faith was amazed, that even in this day and age; in a house filled with non-related people, the family unit ideal of eating dinner together remained intact. Faith watched everyone take their seats, and Buffy came in last with two bottles of wine, placing one by Xander at the end near the kitchen, and brought the other with her to the far end, where Faith was sitting. Faith glanced at the blonde as she took the seat at the end of the table beside her. The older slayer was tense about her current seating arrangement- that much Faith could tell. _Hell, I'd be worried if she wasn't tense. It's been two weeks since we've "spoken" and…nothing._

As the food was passed around, Faith's attention went to eating, until Buffy asked for her to pass the potatoes. Grabbing the dish to her right, Faith lifted it and handed it to the older slayer, who took it from her, her hand brushing the dark slayer's for a moment. Tensing slightly, Faith took a deep breath and let it out slowly before focusing on her plate. She heard the bowl of potatoes being put down and glanced over at the blonde for a moment, chewing in silence. For her part, Buffy was poking her potato with a fork, an eyebrow arched at the amount of steam coming from the hot spud.

"Too steamy for ya?" Vi asked Buffy from a couple of seats down, causing Buffy to blink, and refocus before smiling.

"Yeah, just a bit," Buffy laughed before looking quickly at Faith.

Faith resisted rolling her eyes and making a crack at the double entendre that had just been laid out in front of her, but decided to refrain out of Buffy's already visible nervousness. The amount of people at the table that could pick up on it was large, but with a quick look around, Faith was glad to notice that the group was ignoring it purposefully. Within moments, Dawn started talking about her classes from the day, and began going on a tangent about a professor who had a tendency to start giving random information that wasn't necessary to the subject, and Faith smiled softly, enjoying the normal dinner conversation that released any remaining group tension. Faith had learned within days that slaying and everything included in it, was not a dinner subject, and she couldn't help but be glad for the daily reprieve.

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As Faith brought the last of the serving dishes into the kitchen, she flicked her gaze up to see Buffy climbing the stairwell. Scraping the leftovers into small containers, Faith put them in the fridge before telling the others she was going upstairs. A nod from Willow, who was washing off the plates at the sink, was all she needed to be free from the rest of the after-dinner cleaning duties. Exiting quickly, Faith climbed the stairs after Buffy, and walked the long hall down to the blonde's bedroom doors. Knocking softly, Faith heard no response, and opened the door and entered, shutting it quietly behind her. Faith saw that the television was turned on and just loud enough to have muffled her knock, before her gaze quickly flicked to the bathroom door as it opened, light pouring out into the dimly lit bedroom. Buffy entered the room, and stopped when she saw Faith.

Faith shifted her feet as she became aware that Buffy was not going to start talking, so she took the plunge, "Is everything okay, B?"

Buffy closed her eyes for a moment before averting her gaze, "Not completely."

Faith cocked her head slightly, "Anything I can do to help?"

Faith was taken aback by the look Buffy settled on her, her eyes traveling the length of the dark slayer's body, before she blinked again to refocus, "Not right now."

Faith stood, tingling from the look she had been given, before noticing that Buffy had moved across the room and had just gone out onto her terrace. Sighing, Faith followed her out, and leaned on the railing next to her. Faith didn't speak, and she had a feeling Buffy wouldn't either, so they stood out there for a few minutes, enjoying the company of the other. _When are you gonna figure shit out B?_ Faith thought, shaking her head slightly. She caught Buffy looking quizzically at her and allowed her mouth to curl up slightly into a small smile.

"Why are you shaking your head?" Buffy asked, turning slightly towards Faith.

"Just thinking, B," Faith replied, hoping the subject would be dropped. She broke the blonde's gaze and turned to look out over the backyard once again.

She could feel Buffy move beside her, but ignored it, only to tense up when she felt the older slayer's hand gently grasp her forearm. Swallowing audibly, Faith cast a sidelong glance over at Buffy. _What are you doing?_ Her thoughts were answered when Buffy leaned in and left a soft kiss on Faith's cheek, causing the area to burn on contact, _fuck_. Faith turned to look more fully at the older slayer, her eyebrows knitting together slightly in confusion. Buffy merely smiled reassuringly, squeezed Faith's arm and moved back inside. Faith's eyes followed the other Chosen One as she moved back into her room, her body humming from the tender contact, _I'll take that as progress then…_

They were only in the room a matter of moments when a speaker near the door buzzed. Buffy went to it and flicked the switch up, allowing Willow's voice to crackle through, clearing up as she spoke longer, "Buffy, if you want to come down, Dawn, Andrew and I can let you in on what we found."

"Sure, we'll be right down," Buffy replied after flicking the switch back down. She was about to turn away, when it buzzed again, and Buffy flicked it back up.

"We'll?" Willow's voice came back quickly.

Buffy shut her eyes, and Faith cocked her head to one side, a smirk on her face, _get yourself outta that one B._

"Faith's up here, we were talking," Buffy replied. "See you in a couple of minutes."

With that, Buffy let the switch go back down and turned to Faith, "Coming?"

Faith snorted at the comment and before she knew it, the retort was out of her mouth, "Not without your help, B." Within seconds, Buffy's face went red and she turned and walked to the main door, leaving without waiting for Faith, _note to self, be careful with sexual innuendos-_ _at least until she's a bit more comfortable with 'em._

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Once Faith entered Willow's study, she took in who was there, Buffy, standing awkwardly, and as far from her as possible, Xander, Kennedy and Dawn crammed onto the loveseat and Andrew sitting next to Willow. Taking a seat in the other plush chair, Faith waited for the Willow to begin.

"Okay, so, the Kartuk exist mainly just to end the world, which is not so fun, and kinda stupid to exist just to die, but, anyway," Willow curbed her tangent quickly. "So, yeah, they need a rare form of power that has never been able to exist before…" Willow paused, thinking, "1997."

"Ah, '97, the year of the…" Xander paused, his face contorting in confusion. "What did happen in '97?"

Buffy sighed, "I died, Kendra was called…"

"Two slayers in the same place, specifically two actually 'Chosen Ones'," Willow clarified, "First it was Buffy and Kendra, but they were never around each other enough to harness the power needed from a physical life source. But then later on, Faith came along, and you guys were around each other a lot, but these guys were living in Africa, South Africa to be exact, and they didn't get here in time before the two of you…split."

Faith nodded, swallowing the lump that formed in her throat.

"Then with the end of Sunnydale, you were together again, allowing for the power to grow, but we were moving across the U.S. for the most part, so again, these guys aren't too skilled in the mobility area. When we settled here, they moved in closer, hoping that Faith would come back, and you have, so now it's just a waiting game."

"How do they harness the power?" Buffy asked, "I mean, is it through physical contact, or a spell?"

"Spell," Dawn replied, "You don't actually need to be near them, they can just, literally suck the life force out of you, and you wouldn't feel it, or notice a difference. But something like this takes time, months even. They can't just do this in a matter of days."

"Okay, so what's our timeframe, how do we stop the spell?"

"The most we can do is muffle the spell," Willow replied, leaning back in her chair, "I can perform a buffering spell that would protect you from the majority of their spell. Kind of like putting up a wall, but leaving a very small window."

"Why not just shut the window?" Faith asked, crossing her arms.

"It's not that simple," Willow sighed, "I can't just counter-act their spell, I don't know what it could do to you, and if I did, they would run and wait for us for another time."

"So you want them to still get their power, just not as fast? While we try to find them and stop it?" Xander inquired.

"Exactly," Willow answered, smiling gently.

"Great, so we're the bait," Faith shook her head, sighing.

"Yup," Kennedy turned to look over at Faith, grinning, "Go act baity."


	13. Progression

FYI: This chapter is going to jump a bit more quickly from scene to scene to aid in laying out and progressing different plot pieces that otherwise wouldn't mesh together in only a few long scenes.

Thanks for the reviews! Makes me smile when I get mail from FF.N.

PS: kudos to anyone who noticed that Kennedy's final line at the end of the last chapter is actually a purposefully copied quote that Xander said to Cordelia in "Anne".

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It had been several days since Faith and Buffy had been downgraded from slayers to bait, and Faith was still itching to do some damage instead of waiting. _Waiting to slay Big Bads never was one of my strong points…_Faith mused, as she hunched slightly to clear a tree limb, the sound of dying leaves crunching beneath her boots, signifying that the end of autumn was upon them. About ten feet away, Faith saw Sandra lift her hand to her face to push some free-falling bangs out of her eyes. Buffy had paired them off when the large group headed out to scour all four quartiles in one night for any sign of the Kartuk demons. Vi and Rona were thrown into the suburban (and not too demon infested) area that was Quartile 4, Kennedy and Willow were given the now well known Quartile 3 – which meant that Buffy was allowing for Kennedy to get in some good vamp dustings, but it should keep Willow out of any demon fighting fray (at least while there wasn't any immediate slayer back-up). Buffy took Dawn and Xander with her into the relatively decrepit- and cemetery laden- Quartile 2, while Faith and Sandra happily took the normally demon infested, run down part of town that was Quartile 1. _I'd rather be given a more dangerous area to patrol than deal with puffed up newbie vamps all night long._

"So, where are you from originally, Faith?" Sandra broke into Faith's thoughts, causing her to almost get hit in the face with a branch limb when she turned her head suddenly in Sandra's direction.

"Boston," Faith replied, snapping the adventurous branch off of the tree in anger, "You?"

"Norwich," Sandra answered, smiling softly.

The pair fell into silence, and Faith had a feeling that Sandra really wanted to ask her something, but had no idea how to, "So, are we gonna patrol all night using shitty small talk to pass the time, or are you gonna ask me whatever it is that you really wanna know?"

Sandra laughed nervously, "I'm obvious, aren't I? Bollocks," Faith smirked. "Ah well, I guess…I guess just want to ask you about Buffy, how are things?"

Faith sighed heavily before thinking of how to respond, "Tense."

Sandra laughed again, only this time fully, "I can tell. I think the whole house noticed, even little Lynn is picking up on the tension between you two."

Faith smiled and shook her head, "Well what do you think?"

"Buffy obviously wants to reciprocate your feelings for her, but something's holding her back."

Faith snorted, "Tell me about it."

"Faith," Sandra said sternly, stopping to look at the other brunette, causing Faith to stop as well. "She knows where you stand; you need to wait for her to make a move. She's the one who isn't ready yet; this has to be on her terms."

Faith nodded, sighing inwardly, "Yeah, I know," Falling back into step beside one another, the pair went silent again. "Doesn't mean I hafta like it."

Grinning, Sandra shook her head at Faith. Faith was about to say something else when she got the feeling that they were being watched. Glancing over at Sandra she could tell she felt it too. With slayer-senses on high alert, Faith cocked her head towards her left and Sandra followed her lead. Hearing a low snarl, Faith only had a moment to prepare herself before a brute of a demon barreled into her from the brush. Grunting, Faith crashed to the ground, wincing in pain as a branch raked across her temple and into her hair. The sound of Sandra yelling her name before being knocked over herself was all Faith heard before she focused on getting out from underneath the demon currently pinning her.

Looking into his red eyes, Faith let out a yell and head butted him as hard as possible before rocking her body and throwing the demon over her head. Springing up, Faith caught sight of Sandra fighting dirty on the ground with the other demon out of the corner of her eye before crouching down to pull a gleaming knife from her boot. Taking a long look at the demon before her, all Faith could think was, _that is one, fugly demon._ His skin was brown and covered in patches of black hair, four horns extruded around his ears and two out of his chin, emphasizing the sharp teeth that protruded from his mouth. As a bit of drool dripped out from between his sharp teeth, the demon lunged for Faith, only to receive a roundhouse kick to the sternum, sending him flying to the ground. Faith moved quickly to him as he scrambled up and slammed her heel into the back of his knee, causing him to fall partially back to the ground with a short howl. Quickly hitting the demon in the face with her elbow, Faith turned slightly and punched the demon again in the face with the hand holding the knife before pulling back and slamming the knife into his chest. The demon let out a strangled gurgle before falling backwards, the knife sliding out as he fell. Faith turned towards Sandra's direction, who was still struggling on the ground, this time with the demon on top, and ran over. Grabbing the demon's shoulder, Faith yanked him off of Sandra and spun him before slamming her knife into the demon's chest.

Holding out a hand to Sandra, Faith pulled the other slayer up.

"That was rude of them," Sandra grumbled, brushing the leaves off of herself.

Faith scanned the area around them, looking troubled, "That was too easy."

"Easy? Luv, that was me playing rugby in a life-or-death wrestling way," Sandra scoffed, catching her breath.

"I've had more challenging fights with a newly risen vamp than what that demon gave me. I don't think they were here to fight us," Faith reasoned.

"So what, you think we just invaded their personal bubbles?" Sandra asked sarcastically.

Faith was silent a moment, weighing the fact in the comment, "It's possible," Looking around one last time, Faith sheathed her knife and began walking again. "C'mon, let's finish sweeping this area and get the night over with."

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Faith collapsed with a sigh into the comfy chair in Willow's study, the four "teams" reassembled after the night's patrol. As everyone took seats, or leaned on something, Faith spoke up, "So, who wants to see who had the most interesting night?"

Faith grinned as everyone stole glances at each other before Kennedy piped up, "What happened?"

"Popped two demons," Sandra replied, running a hand through her hair. "Ugly buggers, too."

"What did they look like?" Willow asked, leaning forward on her desk.

Faith glanced over at Sandra quickly before thinking back to the short fight, "Brown, lil' on the furry side…hmmm, red eyed, protruding teeth, horns around their ears and on their chin. That's about all I cared to notice."

Willow flicked her gaze up to Dawn, who nodded, "That sounds like a Kartuk demon," Dawn mused. Off of Faith's shocked face, "The chin horns give them away. Did they put up a big fight?"

Faith shrugged, a smiling tugging at the corners of her lips, "Well, Sandra seems to think so."

"Hey! Not my fault that I was stuck with the mud wrestling champ of the pair," Sandra shot back defensively.

"Faith?" Willow looked at the dark slayer for an explanation.

"It was a simple fight, not too difficult. Her demon just gave her a harder run for her money than mine did," Faith sighed. "To me, it seemed as if we had intruded upon their protected area, and they came at us because of that. I don't think if we had investigated the area they were in that they would have attacked us."

"You probably slayed the ones who were supposed to keep tabs on you and Buffy," Andrew rationalized.

Willow took a deep breath, "Which means that you've stirred up a hornet's nest now."

"What? Me? I was just doing my job," Faith lifted a hand to her chest, faux defensive.

"True, but now they'll probably want to speed things up a bit on their whole 'end the world' plan," Willow replied.

"If that's true, where are you on getting this spell for us?" Buffy asked, shifting her position on the couch.

Willow shook her head, "I still need to get a couple of ingredients that are hard to come by. I had to call up the Coven to get them, to which they have to scramble to find them. Hopefully they'll get here by this weekend, and I'll do the spell then."

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Faith sat on one of the kitchen counters, the cordless phone in her hand, a single bare foot swinging forward and backward slightly, tapping her heel against the lower cabinets. Looking once more at the number next to her, Faith turned the phone on and dialed the seven digits. After two rings, the phone picked up.

"Famous Pizza, pick-up or delivery?" A woman asked quickly into the phone.

"Delivery please," Faith dutifully answered.

"Number please?"

"555-4829."

"Summers residence?" The woman asked after a moment.

_Hmmm…Guess they order from here often._ "That's the one."

"All right, make I take your order?"

"Yeah, can I have four large pizzas, two of them plain; one half pepperoni, half pineapple; and one with the works? That's all."

"Sure thing. You're total will be $47.08, and it'll be there in about 45 minutes."

"Thanks," Faith replied, hanging up.

Placing the phone beside her, Faith leaned back slightly, resting her head against the cabinets behind her. Closing her eyes, Faith felt her stomach rumble- the current winner in the hungry and horny contest. Sitting silently for a few moments, Faith heard Dawn's and Buffy's voices floating into the kitchen as they made their way down the stairs, and opened her eyes, waiting for their entrance.

"Are you serious? He did that?" Buffy's incredulous voice grew louder as they walked into the kitchen.

"Totally. I was so surprised that the embarrassment didn't set in until long after everyone had gone back to work," Dawn answered, shaking her head before glancing up at Faith and smiling.

"What happened?" Faith asked.

"Oh, Peter just sent two dozen lilies into my class today because it was our year and a half anniversary, and he won't be able to see me for another month at least," Dawn explained.

"That was sweet of him. Nice to know there are still some good guys out there," Faith smiled.

"Hard to come by, but yeah," Dawn winked. "So, what are you doing in here?"

"Mmm, ordered pizza. I've since moved on to the impatiently waiting phase," Faith gestured towards the phone.

"What'd you get?" Buffy asked, leaning forward on the island.

Faith's eyes focused in on the low cut shirt Buffy was wearing that, due to her leaning, gave ample exposure of her chest, and jolted her self into responding upon catching herself staring, "Uhh, four pizzas with random toppings of plain, pepperoni, pineapple and the everything."

"Nice," Dawn nodded. "The whole gang will probably come down here to eat."

Faith paused, thinking, doing her best to ignore the knowing smirk flashing across Buffy's features as she shifted her position on the island.

"Should I have ordered more?"

"Nah, Vi and Rona already headed back home, and Willow and Kennedy have locked their bedroom door," Buffy smiled, a glint in her eyes.

"Yeah, and we all know what _that _means," Dawn rolled her eyes, grinning herself.

Faith laughed, "Mmm, I guess the post-slayage hungry and hornies don't just apply to me, huh B?"

Buffy grinned, but merely shook her head at the comment, averting her eyes from the brunette's. The group shared a few moments laughing together before Faith heard Xander's footsteps as he came down the hall from the living room, Sandra right behind him.

"I heard talk of food," Xander stated bluntly, looking around.

Faith laughed again, "It'll be here soon enough."

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Faith reached for the last slice of the pepperoni half of the pizza, amazed at the ability the five of them had at packing away four pizzas. _Then again, with three slayers, and two big eaters…_ Buffy's laughter broke into her thoughts, and Faith turned in the blonde's direction as she took a bite of the pizza.

"Oh my God, I remember that! Your last words were something like, 'Hey, watch this!'" Buffy laughed again, and Faith saw Xander's face reddening.

"Xander, you should never let those words come out of your mouth ever again," Dawn giggled.

"It's not my fault! I didn't know there weren't any brakes on the damn thing!" Xander crossed his arms defensively, a pout forming on his lips.

"Aw, luv, don't worry. Ten years from now…we still won't let you forget it," Sandra laughed, gaining a grunt from Xander.

"Wonderful," Xander sighed. Looking around, he noticed the lack of food remaining, and looked over at Sandra. "Time for bed hon?"

Sandra looked over at Xander, a sultry look in her eye. "Sure babe," Standing, Sandra nodded to the group, and before exiting, and added, "If that's what you call it."

A series of hollering from Faith, Dawn and Buffy ushered a blushing Xander and a laughing Sandra out of the room. After the pair went up the stairs, Dawn leaned back in her chair and let out a burp.

"Nice," Faith nodded, raising her beer towards Dawn in acknowledgement.

"Thanks, it's my signal to go to bed," Dawn replied, smiling as she stood up and stretched.

"What? It's like…" Faith trailed off, pulling her phone out of her pocket to check. "Okay, 1:30, but still…"

"Faith, I've got a 9:45 class tomorrow, I'm going to bed," Dawn squeezed Faith's shoulder before looking at Buffy, "Night Buffy."

"Night honey," Buffy smiled, watching the younger Summers woman leave the room.

Leaning back in her chair, Faith took a final swig of her beer before standing up and pulling the boxes together, "I'll be right back," Faith held up the boxes towards Buffy, who nodded, before going down the hall to the garage and dumping the boxes just inside the garage next to the trash bins.

Re-entering the dining room, Faith saw that Buffy had finished cleaning up, and was now finishing off her own beer. Washing the empty bottle out with water at the sink, Buffy turned to look over at Faith.

"I should head to bed," Faith shifted her feet, the second part of the H & H was now at full attention, and she wanted to get out of there as fast as possible to take care of it on her own instead of doing something else that she'd regret in the morning. _Like fucking B senseless on this island…shit._ Groaning, Faith shifted again, and noticed the pointed look Buffy was giving her, "What?"

"You just look…" Buffy trailed off, shaking her head, and Faith suddenly could see the tension in all of the blonde's movements. _You get what I'm feeling, don't you, B?_

Faith stepped closer, not yet daring to hope for anything, "Look like what, B?" She breathed.

Buffy started to speak, but her voice hitched on the words and she fell into silence, her eyes flicking down to Faith's lips. Shifting her feet, Buffy blinked and cleared her throat, trying to gain some distance from the situation, "You look like you've got an itch to scratch."

Faith allowed a knowing grin to spread across her features, "Yeah… Thus my pending exit to my room," Faith winked and backed away from Buffy, fighting down the urge to just grab the blonde and kiss her for all she was worth.

Buffy swallowed and nodded silently before replying quietly, "I know what you mean."

Faith's eyes widened at the admission, and she felt her jaw slacken slightly, _Holy fucking…I need to get away from her right now._ Faith opened her mouth and took a sobering breath, "On that note, I _definitely_ need to go to bed."

Buffy allowed a guilty smile to flash across her features, "'K. Enjoy."

_Oh don't you know it._

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Faith jolted up into a sitting position, the remnants of her dream leaving her pulse racing and a thin sheen of sweat coating her body. _What the fuck? This is happening way too often._ Sighing, Faith climbed out of bed, knowing she would never get back to sleep now. Glancing at the clock as she went to her dresser, Faith groaned, _5:30? Can't these dreams every wake me up after 9 AM? That's a far more normal time to wake up, or hey, if you're gonna wake me up, let me remember them for once._ After yanking on a pair of sports shorts, Faith pulled a sports bra and a worn out gray t-shirt out of the top drawer and got dressed.

A few minutes later, Faith walked out the back door, the early morning chill causing goose bumps to appear all along her arms and legs. Stretching quickly, Faith jogged off the porch and entered the trail in the woods. She had run this trail practically every morning these dreams woke her up, it helped ease her stress over them, and plus, it cleared her mind of all things Buffy. It felt good to have the cold air flowing into her lungs, and the wind blowing against her face. She felt the blood pumping through her veins as her pulse quickened from running, trying to keep up with the rigorous workout she was giving her still lethargic body.

As she neared the second mile marker, Faith knew the obstacle course part of the trail was approaching, and shifted to the right of the trail to bypass it. Coming around the bend that signified the end of the second mile, Faith saw Buffy sitting atop the rope wall. Faith saw Buffy's head whip around to look down at her intrusion, and slowed to a stop near the wall. Taking a long breath through her nose, Faith let it out of her mouth, regaining control over her breathing, watching as Buffy climbed down to greet her.

"Hey B, what are you doing up so early?" Faith asked, lifting a hand to wipe the sweat from her forehead.

Buffy shrugged, slipping the hood of her sweatshirt off of her head, "Couldn't sleep. Came out here, watched the sun come up."

Faith glanced around, "In the woods?"

"Yeah, it's nice to watch as the light livens up this place slowly," Buffy said quietly.

Faith glanced over at the smaller slayer and noticed her shifting her weight from one foot to the other, a sense of nervousness surrounding her. Taking a step closer, Faith reached out a hand and placed it gently on Buffy's arm, squeezing it gently. When Buffy didn't react, Faith felt a knot of concern form in her stomach and moved closer, lifting her hand to pull Buffy's chin up so she could look into the blonde's eyes.

"Hey," Faith said softly, "You okay?"

Faith watched Buffy smile gently and nod in response. When Buffy's eyes flicked down her lips, Faith suddenly became distinctly aware of the lack of personal space she had inadvertently created. Sighing inwardly, Faith started to shift backwards to allow for a more comfortable amount of space between them. As she began to turn her head, Faith felt Buffy's hands grasp her jaw gently and turn her back towards her. Faith swallowed audibly, her gaze moving from Buffy's lips to her eyes and back again, _don't flake out on me now B…_

It was only a moment before Faith felt the soft lips of the blonde's apply gentle pressure to her own, and an even shorter amount of time before she sighed into the kiss and moved her body closer. _Finally._ Lifting a hand to cup Buffy's face, Faith tilted her head to one side and opened her mouth slightly, flicking her tongue out to trace Buffy's lower lip. Faith could feel Buffy smiling as she opened her mouth in response, giving Faith access. She heard Buffy moan softly against her as their tongues dueled for dominance before Faith pulled back and kissed her top lip fully. Breaking the kiss, Faith leaned her forehead against Buffy's, her breath mingling with the blonde's.

"God B," Faith whispered, feeling the little shocks of electricity shooting through her body at finally kissing the older slayer again. "That was…"

"Hot," Buffy finished quickly, _Good to see you coming 'round to accepting things,_ Faith mused.

Swallowing, Faith pulled back, needing space to think cohesively.

"Okay, what does this mean?" Faith asked, sobering up enough to attempt a serious conversation, despite that the look that Buffy had just given her sent waves of heat to flush from her face straight down to her core. _Damn B, one –very hot- kiss, and you've got me wet. Fuck._

"I'm…I'm not sure," Buffy looked up at Faith, confusion etched across her features. Faith noticed the awkwardness and nervousness creeping back up into the blonde, and figured that pressing this topic right now was probably a one-way ticket to being shut out of any chances with her.

Sighing, Faith's inner rationalization won out, and cocked her head to one side, "Wanna run?"

Seeing the relief wash across Buffy's features, Faith hoped this gift of non-discussion would pay off in the future. With a quick nod from the blonde, they were off, the tension from the short, sexually charged encounter and it's awkward aftermath slipping off of them with ease as their pace increased.

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Taking a swig from her half-empty bottle of Corona, Faith let the taste wash throughout her mouth before swallowing, "We need a pool table," She stated bluntly from her reclined position on one of the deck chairs out on the patio.

The sun was setting after a particularly long day of dealing with Buffy awkwardly avoiding her after their morning "run-in", and Faith was waiting out the final remaining hour before she could go out and kill something evil to get her frustrations out.

"Where would we even put one?" Xander replied from the chair next to her, not turning his head to look in her direction.

"Well, there's plenty of open space outside of the training room for one. I mean seriously," Faith looked up upon hearing the door open and saw Kennedy come outside before continuing. "Even with it there, it wouldn't hinder access from the stairs of to any of the rooms."

"Pool table in the house," Willow mused, sipping her glass of wine. "Interesting."

"That would fucking rock," Kennedy grinned, high-fiving Faith for the idea.

Glancing up at her lover, Willow shifted in her chair at the patio table, "Well, we could invest in one…" Her sentence trailed off as Andrew popped his head out.

"Willow? Giles is on the phone for you."

"Thanks," Willow stood, taking her wine with her. At the door, she turned back to look at the group before addressing Faith. "Put a post-it on the fridge door; see who would be willing to chip in. I'd rather not use the Council's money for something as trivial as a pool table."

After her exit, Xander grunted, "It's a _pool table_. Nothing trivial about it."


	14. Newcomers, Spells & Living Victims

Okay, serious writer's block has attacked me in the form of plot issues, thus explaining that lack of updating.

Plus, the Buffy Season 8 comic came out (kicks ass) but I'll ignore the way that is set up so as to follow my own storyline. Also, I have had 4 different papers ranging from 4 pages to 18 pages due between three weeks ago and next week, and then finals. And, if that isn't enough, I had to go home for my grandfather's funeral. Sorry for the delay, but life took a turn for the busier.

Note: The next few chapters after this one are going to jump several months, instead of weeks (as this story's timeline is technically around late October/early November at this point).

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Faith grabbed her jacket, preparing to go out and slay- a deep desire to vent her frustrations on some unlucky vamp, when she heard the doorbell ring. Finishing pulling on her coat, Faith peered around the corner to look down the hallway, and saw various other people poking their heads out of different rooms to see who could possibly be at the door. Finally, Buffy's heels broke the silence as she entered the hallway from Willow's Study and went to the door. Faith moved down the hall as well, leaning against the frame of the entrance hallway.

Buffy moved to the side, and let in a girl who looked to be around Dawn's age, with bright, strawberry blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail. She was about Faith's height, and appeared quite shy; _then again, given this situation, I think most people would be_.

"Follow me, we can talk in another room," Buffy motioned for the girl to follow her, and, upon giving Faith a quick glance, Faith followed behind, shooing away everyone else as they entered Willow's study.

Shutting the door, Faith stood by it, to ensure no one barreled in, and her eyes flicked to the connecting door that led to Andrew's study, where Andrew and Dawn entered quickly before closing the door behind them.

Willow stood from her desk and came around, a welcoming smile on her face, "Tracy."

"Trey," the girl corrected quickly.

Willow nodded in acknowledgment of the nickname, "Trey, I'm Willow, and this is Andrew and Dawn, Buffy's sister. Behind you is Faith."

Trey turned and looked back at Faith, who twitched her lips slightly upward at the younger girl, confused as to why she was here. She could feel something coming off of the girl, but she couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was.

"So why did you come here?" Buffy asked gently.

"I went to the place in New York, but Mr. Wood told me to come here instead."

"Was there something wrong with the Slayer Headquarters there?" Willow asked, _bingo, that's why she's here_.

"My father called the police on Mr. Wood, saying he was building a sort of terrorist cell there. They arrested him, but the Council called in and wired over his bail, but I was sent here without any trace back to Albany," Trey replied, shifting slightly at the mention of her father.

"Where are you from?" Buffy asked, skirting the issue the girl appeared to have with her family for the moment.

"Providence."

"Where?" Dawn asked, confused.

"Rhode Island," Faith sighed, "Honestly, when are you guys going to remember that state? I mean, seriously, there are 50, and you always forget that one."

"Well, it is tiny," Dawn shrugged.

"So not the point right now," Willow interjected quickly, refocusing the group, "Trey, this group is going to go out patrolling right now, but you can stay and wait for them to come back. In the meantime, you can help fill me in on some information about yourself that I would like to know."

Trey nodded, her eyes looking over at Buffy, and then back at Faith before sighing, "Sure."

Buffy squeezed the girl's arm gently, "We'll be back soon," Then, to Willow. "Why not call Robin, find out the sitch, since he didn't check in with us, drop a line to Giles, and set her up in the spare room?"

"Uh, hey, not meaning to bust, but I'm set up there," Faith cut in, before leveling a look at Buffy, "I mean, unless you have a better idea…"

Faith noted how Buffy ignored the innuendo as she replied, "My bed's huge, don't worry about it." _Something tells me this will be for sleeping purposes only …_

"'K," Faith replied stoically, "You ready to go?"

Buffy looked over once more at Trey before nodding, "Yeah, let's go."

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Slamming open Buffy's bedroom door, Faith yanked her coat off and tossed it on Buffy's bed as she followed the blonde slayer into her bathroom. Without words, Faith opened the closet and pulled out a First-Aid kit. Placing it on the sink counter, Faith looked over at Buffy who was slowly pulling her jacket off.

"This was one of my favorite ones too," Buffy grumbled, wincing as her arms were freed of the leather fabric.

Faith let out a low whistle upon seeing the damage, "Wow B, looks like he got you pretty good."

"Since when did vamps carry knives on them? They're supposed to think with their teeth, not their brains," Buffy sighed, looking down at her shoulder.

A deep gash ran from her left collarbone and out to her shoulder before changing direction and sliding down and over her biceps. The area around the wound was caked in dried blood, and her shirt was not only ruined, but soaked in her own blood.

"Fuck, B," Faith shook her head and grabbed a washcloth off of the hanging rack.

Soaking it in warm water and adding soap, Faith carefully cleaned Buffy's wound. When she was finished, Faith picked up a tube of antibiotic ointment and put it all over the angry looking wound. Placing two strips of gauze along the wound, Faith taped them in place and stepped back to admire her handiwork.

"There, now leave those on until the morning, and then you should have healed up, if not, the gash will have sealed up enough," Faith directed.

"Yes Doc," Buffy murmured playfully, a smirk on her face.

Faith smiled back at her and followed the blonde out of the bathroom, leaving the mess they made to be cleaned up later.

"So…one bed…" Faith trailed off.

"It's a king size, there'll be enough room for an ocean between us, so don't read into the offer," Faith smirked. "Unless you wanna sleep on the couch," Faith became serious, only to grin again when Buffy smiled victoriously.

"I'm five-by-five with the ocean, B," Faith nodded before taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

Watching Buffy rummage through her dresser for a pair of pajamas, Faith sighed, "B?" Buffy turned, "What happened this morning? What's going on?"

Buffy turned fully around to face her, and leaned back against the dresser, shutting the drawers as she did. "I…we…We kissed."

"Got that," Faith snorted, "I mean the whole meaning behind it."

"I…" Buffy sighed, "Do we have to analyze this now?"

"Well, seeing as I am about to be crashing in your bed for an extended period of time, and with the history between us, I would like to know just what the hell is going on," Faith shook her head before standing so she could pace.

"I just don't know my feelings yet," Buffy replied quietly.

"B, you knew with Angel and Riley and…well, possibly with Spike, how hard is this?" Faith stopped pacing, gesturing between them.

"Faith, you're a woman, I've…I've never been attracted to a woman before...Not everyone is capable of accepting a shift in their orientation as quickly and easily as you," Buffy shot back, setting her jaw, and Faith could see that she had hit a nerve.

Looking away, Faith glanced around the room, trying to calm herself, "Fine, but B, you gotta cut me some slack, I mean, talk to Willow or Xander, someone, _anyone_. I do not prefer to be strung along while you try to figure out how you feel about me." Shaking her head, Faith moved past Buffy to the deck, and shut the door behind her. Lighting a cigarette, Faith took a long drag as she tried to calm herself down. _This is fucking insane._

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"All righty," Willow handed a candle to Buffy and Faith. "Now, move into the circle, and stand back to back."

Faith had been in the shower when Buffy had stumbled in to use the toilet, and she was a bit taken aback by the fact that the blonde could be up at 7 AM, but by the time she was done with the bathroom, Buffy was back in bed. When Faith grabbed a cup of coffee downstairs, Willow had come in to tell her that they would finally be doing the spell today to counteract the Kartuk demon spell. Faith had asked about it being difficult, and Willow had responded in an odd way,

"Difficult? No, it's neither that or time consuming…" Willow trailed off, looking a bit sad before snapping back to the present to smile at Faith before fixing her cup of tea.

Faith had wanted to ask what was wrong, but was distracted by Kennedy who came in and struck up a conversation with her.

Now, hours later, Faith remembered the morning conversation as she stepped into the circle with Buffy, and used it to distract her from the close proximity of the other slayer. It was a short spell- Willow spoke an incantation in Latin, and then Faith and Buffy blew out the candles in unison. Within seconds, a sharp wind blew through the room, scattering the powder circle Willow had poured onto the floor.

After a moment, Faith looked at the red head, "Was that supposed to happen?"

"I think so," Willow replied, looking around, "I've never done this spell before, but I'll take the oddity of the wind as a good thing."

The three women shared a grin before the sound of Xander's voice crackled through the loudspeaker in the corner of the training room, grabbing their attention immediately. Jogging over, Buffy flicked a button,

"What's up Xander?" Buffy asked into the speaker, Faith walking up next to her with Willow beside her.

"A guy came to the door, short a hand, asking for you. He says it's important," Xander replied.

Buffy flicked the switch back, looking at the other two women.

"Sounds like it could be our missing Harrison," Willow mused, and Faith nodded, the same thought on her mind.

Buffy flicked the switch, "We'll be right up Xand, thanks. Oh, what room is he in?"

"I put him in Andrew's room, as Kennedy is working with Dawn in Willow's on something. I'll meet you in the kitchen."

"Gotcha," Buffy replied, letting go of the switch, turning to Willow, "Make sure he doesn't have any spells or traces of spells on his aura, I don't want this to be a kamikaze mission the Kartuk demons set up to get to us."

Willow nodded, "I'll go in first, get his name as a way to buy time to check him over, when I come back out… Well, we'll go from there."

"Sounds like a plan," Faith nodded.

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Faith leaned against the kitchen counter, out of sight of the door to Andrew's study when it would open. She had been standing there in silence for a couple of minutes, her gaze hopping from Buffy to the faucet, Buffy to the fridge, Buffy to the dishwasher. It wasn't doing her any good in staying calm and centered. She needed to move, talk, hit, _anything_; just not this silent standing, alone in a room with Buffy- especially when things between them were cloudy enough as they were.

Faith jerked suddenly at the sound of the door across the hall from them opening and shutting quickly. A moment later, Willow entered into the kitchen, Xander right behind her with a pad of paper in his hand.

"Well, there are no spells that I could detect on him and no traces of anything in particular. There were some traces of various ingredients, but nothing that I could piece together into anything remotely dangerous," Willow explained, her eyes flicking from one slayer to the other.

"It is Harrison Beatman for sure though, as if the lack of hand wasn't evidence enough," Xander added. "He wasn't too forthcoming with general questions; he seems to prefer to really talk to you, Buf."

"Okay, let's go in then. Xander, I want you to come in from the side door next to the hallway in a minute, Faith, you enter from Willow's study at the same time Will and I go in the front."

"What for?" Faith asked, not quite getting the point.

Xander grinned, "It's meant to freak him out; he has three places to exit, which we will all cover by entering through them. My delayed entrance is meant to shake him up, mess up the interview, so he loses focus, just in case he's being manipulated by those Kartuk boys."

Faith nodded, _nice_.

"Okay, everyone set?" Buffy asked, looking around at the nods, "Let's go."

Faith nodded to Dawn and Kennedy as she moved through the study, before hearing Buffy enter, and opened her door and came in to the left of the man. He had pushed his chair further into the corner, apparently set up while Willow and Xander had spoken with him. Catching his nervous glance, Faith glanced down and noticed how his left arm ended at the wrist with a leather wrapping covering the end. Shutting the door behind her, Faith leaned against Andrew's desk while Buffy introduced herself.

Harrison nodded in recognition at the name, relaxing slightly, but continued to eye Faith. _I can tell when I'm not wanted._ Faith mused; _this guy did not want anyone except B to be in here. Poor boy won't get his way._ Faith normally would sympathize with demon or vamp survival victims, but with the trouble this guy had been giving Willow and Xander, and the continuous looks that Faith was receiving were making it extremely difficult. Her dislike of him was solidified when Harrison looked at Buffy, and asked, point blank,

"Do we need to have other people in here? I only really need to talk to you."

Buffy allowed her lips to twitch slightly before crossing her arms under her chest, a stern look appearing suddenly on her face, "Either you tell me what it is you want to tell me in front of them, or you leave."

Faith noticed Willow shift at the ultimatum, knowing the risk that was involved, by Harrison merely sighed, "Fine, they can stay I guess." _Oh yeah, as if you had a choice in the matter._

"Now, what exactly is it that you wanted to tell me?" Buffy asked, relaxing slightly.

"I was the guy whose hand you found out next to Lucky's Pub," Buffy nodded. "I escaped from those demons this morning. They aren't exactly the brightest, so I just basically was biding my time for the right moment."

Harrison fell silent, and jerked slightly when Xander opened the door from the entrance hall. Shutting it behind him, Xander moved next to Faith and leaned on the desk beside her. _Talk about subtle._

Harrison gave the group a glare- as if letting everyone know that he was aware of the game, before continuing, "I was the bait, or at least that's what they told me. They needed a victim in that alley, one that would leave more than just ink in the papers and police tape around the pub, so they apparently attacked me more viciously than the others- despite my survival and no one else's. I don't know exactly why I was allowed to live, I mean, I don't think it was their intention, but I survived the initial attack in the alley, so I guess they didn't want me to go to the police before you would get involved. All I know is that they had a trap set up in that alley that needed you and some other strong slayer, supposedly the only other Chosen One, to get into close proximity together with the spell. I don't know the specifics, or anything, but I did hear them talking about how you wouldn't know when the spell was done."

Faith shifted slightly at the mention of another Chosen One- meaning her, but knew better than to look at Buffy, _don't want Hook-in-Training here figuring out I'm the other one._

Buffy nodded, "Is there anything else you could tell us? Where were you held prisoner? Was it their main location?"

"I'm not sure, they didn't exactly give me the grand tour," Harrison shook his head. "I was up somewhere in Forest Hills, I'm not sure where, I remember stumbling onto the trails somewhere along there, and making it out to the parking lot."

"Were the demons that attacked you in the alley different than the ones that picked you up once you went over the fence?" Willow asked.

Harrison looked up at her, surprised, as if he didn't expect her to know what had happened, "Yeah, now that I think about it, they did look different, a lot actually. I was about to black out once I hit the other side of that fence, I had nothing left in me to fight off another group of demons. But yeah, definitely different."

"What kind of clothing were the ones that attacked you in the alley wearing?" Willow inquired.

Harrison furrowed his brow, as if thinking, "It may have been some sort of tough, leathery fabric, I don't remember, I was kinda fighting for my life, and lost my hand in the process, if you don't mind the sketchy memory on attire."

Faith gave Xander a sidelong glance, as if to say, _check out this punk_, but knew the fact that he was attacked in the alley gave reason to the sarcastic response of the clothing of his attacker.

"I don't mean to upset you," Willow started, "But if this was a human that had done this you, the police would ask the same questions about clothing too, so, this is no different."

Harrison sighed, "I'm sorry, it's just… I've been caged up for weeks, and the only medical treatment I've had so far is those demons taking a torch to my wrist to cauterize it."

"Fair enough, do you want us to call an ambulance, or give you a lift to the hospital?" Willow asked.

"Nah, I don't want an ambulance, but, if you don't mind having someone drop me off…" Faith arched her eyebrow when he gave her the once over, _don't even think about going there_.

Buffy cleared her throat, jarring Harrison out of his stare, "I can have that arranged, if you'll just wait here," Glancing around, Buffy exited the room into Willow's study, where Dawn and Kennedy were currently throwing a piece of crumpled paper back and forth as entertainment.

Faith grinned at the guilty look on the two women's faces when they entered, but Buffy was too preoccupied to say anything, "Ken, can you drive our guest to the hospital? You don't have to stay, just make sure he gets in for treatment for that wrist and whatever else he has for injuries. Make sure he knows before you go in to cover the fact that it was demons.

Kennedy nodded and stood. Giving Willow a look, Kennedy planted a chaste kiss on her partner's cheek before going into Andrew's study. After the foursome heard Kennedy taking Harrison down the hall to the garage, Buffy sighed and sat down on the loveseat, Xander taking a seat beside her. Willow leaned on the front of her desk as Faith took a seat in another chair.

"He was a piece of work," Faith sighed.

"I can't believe he had the gall to give that look to you, after all his bitching…" Buffy trailed off, looking at Faith.

Faith smiled gently, _jealous much?_

"Don't worry about it, he would've gotten a smack to the face long before a car ride to the hospital from me," Faith winked quickly at Buffy before flicking her gaze to Xander, who had started to speak.

"Will, how come you didn't find any signatures of a spell in that alley when you searched it?"

Willow shrugged, "It could have been made of easily combustible ingredients that would have left no trace behind in less than an hour, or it could've been that because I was looking for different types of spells, the one that they used wouldn't have registered."

"Wouldn't any spell done in the vicinity have shown up to you?" Faith asked, "It seems too simple for no trace to be found."

"Faith, I don't know. Some spells really do leave no trace behind in a matter of minutes. That might have been one of them," Willow sighed, clearly angry at missing something.

"The Kartuk definitely didn't have an issue talking about their plans in front of this guy, you sure he wasn't a stoolie?" Faith looked from Buffy to Willow.

Buffy shook her head, "No, the Kartuk really are known to be less than secretive. They're brutes, fighters, bullies, but not intelligent demons."

"Then how did they come up with that spell? And what about following us around the country?" Xander asked, waving his hand for emphasis.

"Again, might not be the brightest, but that doesn't make them stupid," Willow replied. "They are known for their use of the magicks, so they should be pretty damn good at coming up with spell traps and such."

"Okay, so what now?" Faith asked.

Willow sighed again, "Now, we wait to see how they react to the spell that we did."

"So wait," Buffy leaned forward. "Let me get this straight, we gotta wait to see if they oh say, attack us, or up the dosage of sucking our life forces, and _then_ we act?"

Willow stood silent for a moment, "Yup."

Xander raised his hand, before lowering it because of the look Willow leveled at him, "Umm, why?"

"We don't know what their plan is just yet; we don't want to screw ourselves over before we can stop them by knowing what they are doing."

"Point," Xander nodded.

As the group fell silent in acknowledgment of the wait they had ahead of them, Faith slunk down further in her seat, an angry look on her face.

"I hate waiting," Faith grumbled, gaining a grin from the other three. _It sucks ass._


	15. A Birthday to Remember

Okay, college is out for the summer, allowing for me to focus far better on this fic and work. So here is a new chapter for you all to feast on.

Note: This chapter is more laid back as it is gearing up for the next couple of chapters.

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It had been a month and a half since Willow's spell had gone down, and Faith and Buffy could both attest to their hatred of the rigorous questioning of how they felt every 12 hours by Willow or Andrew. Faith was just glad that Andrew had yet to come into their bedroom at the exact 12 hour mark if they were still asleep- _funny, referring to B's room as ours… oh who am I kidding, I've been in there for almost two months_- she figured a fear of castration or bodily harm was keeping him away. Willow had been smart in taking the evening questioning, as both Slayers were awake and fully functioning by then. The only hurdle for Willow was being able to ask them before they went out slaying or if they were eating or- an extreme rarity- if they had crashed for some random reason. Faith smiled when she remembered the one time she had taken a nap on the couch in the living room before going out to slay with Buffy and Kennedy, and Willow had woken her up. Willow promised that if she every needed to wake her up ever again, she'd throw something soft at her from a ten foot safety zone.

Faith's thoughts were shifted suddenly when a hand gripped her arm, bringing her back to the present. Dawn had pulled her to a stop at some obviously expensive clothing store in the mall and was on her way inside.

"Dawn, do you really think B would love you any less if you didn't buy her something expensive for Christmas?" Faith eyed a price tag of a leather jacket just inside the doors, _holy shit, it's nice but not that nice._

"Aww c'mon Faith, have you ever seen my sister not happy at receiving a leather coat?" Dawn whined, moving into the maze of leather coats.

"I remember being told of a certain birthday present that didn't go over so well…" Faith mused, smirking slightly.

"Hey! Who told you about that?" Dawn suddenly reappeared in front of Faith, looking slightly upset.

"Xander, but don't be angry with him, he'd packed away quite a few beers with me by then, so it isn't totally his fault," Faith raised her hands in a "cool it" gesture.

Dawn sighed, relaxing, before turning around, "You think you can move on from the past, don't you? But no, people never forget." Faith thought back to a time long ago, when Buffy, in one of the few instances where Faith had seen unbridled emotion seething from her, had verbally assaulted her on Angel's rooftop back in L.A.

"Yeah," Faith murmured, feeling guilt wash over her. "They never forget Dawnie."

Dawn poked her head around a corner of tan leather jackets, a look of guilt accenting her features, "I'm sorry Faith, I didn't mean…"

"Don't," Faith swallowed and smiled shakily at the brunette. "I'm five by five here, go on, find something for B."

Dawn nodded and moved off again. As Faith brushed her hands along the sleeve of a coat, she heard Dawn start off on a rant.

"You know, this is so annoying, buying her a Christmas gift. I mean seriously, her birthday is like half a month away from this, and I have to get her _another _present."

"Yeah," Faith replied absentmindedly. "I know what that's like. Try having a birthday eleven days before Christmas- that'll put a cramp in any child's joy of getting gifts."

It was a moment before Faith realized what she had just said and stopped fiddling with a clasp button, searching for Dawn. Finding her staring back at her, Faith swallowed and felt a blush start to rise up, but took a deep breath and shook it off, _shit_.

"Faith, why haven't you ever told anyone before?" Dawn asked, concern evident in her voice.

Faith snorted, "No one ever asked, no one cared enough to ask; 'cept for Angel." _Why am I telling her this?_ Faith found herself unable to stop however, and trudged on, "I just, I didn't exactly have a stellar childhood, and birthdays and Christmases were better when no one made a big deal about 'em."

"Faith-" Dawn started.

"No Dawn, please, don't go telling everyone. I'm fine, really. I prefer not making a big deal out of my birthday," Faith sighed. "It's just not my style, 'k?"

Dawn nodded before disappearing silently into the sea of leather once again.

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The dice shook in her hands and dropped to the table, jumping and rattling until coming to a full stop; their faces a varying array of different amounts of dots. Picking up two dice, Faith shook and dropped them again.

"Four of a kind!" Faith proclaimed, her voiced tinged with success.

"Ahh, bite me," Kennedy mumbled, picking up the five dice to begin her turn of rolling.

"I'll talk to Willow about it babe," Faith winked, causing a stir of laughs to arise from the small group of women.

Faith, along with Kennedy, Dawn and Sandra were playing a game of Yahtzee in the kitchen, ignoring the snow falling outside. The rule had become known to Faith that in this house, whoever called out the snow first was handed the snow shovel. It was an amazing way of getting the younger ones to do dirty work; however, this time, Kennedy had done it without thinking, and challenged the other three women in the room with her to a game of Yahtzee to try to get someone else to do the shoveling job for her. Ticking her gaze over Dawn's shoulder, Faith looked outside the sliding patio door to the fluffy layer of snow covering the ground. Flicking her eyes back to Dawn's, she saw a gleam in her eye, _oh no, looking _so _does not count._ Clearing her throat, Faith looked down at the large straight that Kennedy had gleaned from the five dice. _Damn._

"Ai'ight, I'm done, game, set, match," Kennedy called out, "Time to count up the points to see if I can get outta shoveling that patio and snow plowing the driveway."

Faith laughed, "Yeah, 'cause being a Slayer makes that such a tiring job."

"Oh shut up," Kennedy hit Faith in the arm.

"Hey! I'm counting here!" Faith joked, shifting a bit away from Kennedy.

"Hey guys, what are you up to?" Willow asked as she came into the kitchen.

"Betting," Sandra answered vaguely.

"With Yahtzee?" Willow quirked an eyebrow, "Wow, is there really that little to do around here?"

"Well, I originally had another idea, but you were busy," Kennedy waggled her eyebrows, a grin on her face.

The group laughed at Willow's blush before finally laying out scores.

"212," Faith pushed her scorecard into the middle of the group.

"196," Kennedy grunted, crumpling her paper up in frustration.

"311," Sandra proclaimed a Cheshire grin on her face.

"That's not fair, you got like, three Yahtzee's," Dawn whined.

"I didn't cheat," Sandra shrugged.

"C'mon Dawn, what'd ya get?" Faith asked.

"182," Dawn mumbled, resting her chin on her hand.

"Success!" Kennedy clapped her hands, her spirits suddenly higher since revealing her score.

"All right, fine, I'll shovel," Dawn grumbled, "But you're doing the driveway, that only requires time, not labor."

"Fine by me," Kennedy shrugged, rising.

As the group began to stand, Faith put the various items into the Yahtzee box and stepped away from the table. A funny feeling overtook her, and she stumbled slightly.

"Whoa, Faith! You okay?" Sandra moved quickly around the table, the four other women suddenly all focusing on the rogue slayer.

"Yeah, I just feel kinda off," Faith replied, before shaking her head, _oh that made things worse, gotta go lie down_, taking another step away, Faith suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion overcome her and collapsed to the floor. The last thing she heard was Dawn yelling her name as the sound of the Yahtzee box clattered to the ground.

---------------------------------------------------

"_Remember to be careful when you go after these demons, Slayer. They don't play by the fisticuffs rules. They use high powered rifles with potent tranq darts. They'd knock out a rhino, never mind a human," the graying man told her. "And, don't forget that they'd rather shoot and leave you to die from an overdose than go outside their precious walls to find out whatever the fuck you wanted."_

"_Thanks Jacques, but I can handle myself. I'll be extra careful if it makes ya happy. Besides I'm not even going in there yet, strictly recon," Faith replied, sheathing her samurai sword before pulling it's harness onto her body, securing it around her torso so that the hilt stuck out directly behind her head. Pulling her hair back, Faith put it into a ponytail and winked at her aid in Bangkok. He wasn't a native, that much was sure, but he'd lived here long enough to be an amazing informant._

"_If you're just doing recon, then what's with the sword?"_

_Faith paused a moment, as if she needed to think over her response, "Just in case it doesn't stay recon."_

_With a nod to Jacques, Faith left the safe house and started up her Ducati before weaving through over ten miles of backstreets in the moon-less night. The cloud cover was perfect to stay invisible, but caused her to need to bring along night vision binoculars- an item that, while very useful, was also expensive and heavy. _

_Killing the engine a block from the courtyard walls of the demon estate, Faith hid her bike behind a dumpster before climbing a nearby fire escape. Running and jumping from building to building, Faith came upon the courtyard wall quickly. Crouching down, Faith pulled the binoculars from a belt pouch. Scanning the walls, Faith saw only three guards within the walls that would be within visibility distance if she went over. Deciding to try to find if there were any blind spots in the courtyard so that she could get in over the wall without bringing any attention to herself the next time she came here, Faith moved parallel to the wall, and continued across the rooftops, stopping at the corner of one to look again. Scanning, Faith saw what appeared to be a blind corner at the opposite end- a group of barrels and other waste formed a barrier in which she could land unnoticed._

"_Great, so let's just hope tomorrow isn't trash day," Faith murmured to herself before lifting her binoculars again to do a sweep of the yard._

_As she swept her gaze across it, she flashed past a guard and went back, only to finding his rifle trained on her. She had thought that being on a rooftop in this dark weather would be enough cover- apparently not._

"_Shit!" Faith turned quickly and started to run back from the edge of the roof before hearing a single gun shot._

_It was less than a second before she felt the dart hit her in the shoulder blade. Stumbling a few steps, Faith made it to the other edge of the roof before realizing that she had overstepped the edge. The emptiness of unconsciousness overtook her as she felt her body go into a three story free fall._

_---------------------------------------------------------------_

Faith's thoughts were cloudy as she slowly regained consciousness. She knew she wasn't on the floor still, she was too comfortable- _but this is definitely not Buffy's bed_. Allowing her body to slowly reawaken, she began to hear snippets of a conversation as she skimmed the surface of consciousness.

"…upping the ante…"

"…well…now?"

"…Jonesing for a…"

Groaning Faith felt a wave of exhaustion overwhelm her.

"She's coming to," Faith could make out the male voice, but couldn't place an identity to it.

Opening her eyes into little slits, Andrew's face appeared above her head, _oh so not the first thing I want to open my eyes to._

"Hey Faith," Willow's voice floated it, soothing her brain slightly, "I'm going to administer a gentle relaxing spell to counteract the whammy you've received."

Faith let out a noise that she hoped sounded positive, and figured that Willow got the message when she felt a pair of warm palms press against either temple.

A few moments later, Faith felt a wave of calm flow through her, and the stirrings of energy buzzed through her veins.

"Will, wha…" Faith murmured.

"Shhh, just rest for now Faith, I'll come down and check on you, but it's midnight, so just sleep, and I'll come back in the morning to see if you're awake," _Down?_ _Midnight? It was only three last I remember… _"You're in the Trauma Room, so don't get all worried about where you are."

Faith nodded slightly, keeping her eyes closed before heeding Willow's advice and going back to sleep.

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Hearing voices around her, Faith opened her eyes, rousing herself from her slumber. Opening her eyes, Faith took in Willow and Sandra talking quietly in the corner of the room.

"Hey, can I get some pillows to sit up?" Faith called out, her voice cracking during the question, "And some water?"

The pair turned quickly and sprang into action. A few minutes later, Faith was sitting up in the bed, sipping water as Willow explained to her what had happened.

"At first we thought you had just blacked out, but then you're pulse dropped and you began to go into a catatonic state similar to one for people whose systems shut down when they are freezing to death. Then we began the mystic research, and it seems that the Kartuk demons had upped the amount of energy to take from you."

"Why?" Faith asked, confused.

"Who knows, maybe they were pissed at you and Sandra for killing their pals almost two months ago and finally got around to doing something about it. Maybe they messed up the ingredient amounts that time, we don't know, but it happened. I've put up a protection barrier around you to further protect you and Buffy from large doses of your life force being taken."

"Do you think it might have been a message? They might not be able to do something of that magnitude for another long span of time, but they did it then to prove that they could?" Faith inquired.

"That is a possibility, I'll look into it. Right now though, I need to make sure that you're okay. Everyone has been stampeding in and out of here since you collapsed; I had to limit access because I haven't been able to keep things quiet long enough to do a magicks scan," Willow grinned.

"Buffy?" Faith asked softly.

"She's been in here the most, but right now she's training with Trey. It's her way of keeping her mind off of you," Willow winked before standing.

Faith smiled sheepishly, "What time is it?"

"Around 11:30," Sandra replied, getting a new cup of water for Faith while Willow assembled various herbs and other assorted ingredients on a plate.

Placing the plate on a trolley, Willow wheeled it over beside Faith. Faith eyed it for a moment before looking up at Willow.

"I'm not eating that."

Willow laughed, "No one's…"

As Willow was replying the door burst open, revealing a sweat soaked Buffy and Tracy, the latter with a large welt on her shoulder.

"What the hell…" Sandra proclaimed, taking in the sight.

"We were training with the quarterstaff," Buffy explained, grabbing an ice pack.

"What, no crossbow?" Willow asked; a smirk on her face.

Buffy paused to think of the reference before grinning, "Ha, well, we'll get to that. Basics come first though," Ticking her gaze to Faith, Buffy's amused facial expression shifted to relief, "Hey, you're awake! Is she okay?"

"I was just about to determine that when you barreled in," Willow replied, allowing a teasing glint to remain in her eyes so as to not put off the blonde.

"Ah, gotcha, well lemme know what the sitch is when you're done," Buffy nodded at the group before leaving with Tracy.

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Faith leaned on the doorframe to Buffy's bedroom, watching the blonde reading a book on the bed. Today had been her birthday, and while she had always wished it were a quiet one, she had spent more than half of it in the medical room, recovering from a whammy of a spell from the Kartuk demons. Aside from that, however, Faith was glad that Dawn had kept her promise and not told anyone, or made a big deal out of it. Sighing softly, Faith moved further into the room and plopped down onto the bed on her stomach. Buffy looked up from the book she was reading and quirked an eyebrow.

"Someone's feeling better I take it," Buffy bookmarked the page she was at and shut the book to focus on Faith.

"Yeah, well, you knew that. Oh, Willow's doing some second spell to protect us from anything like what happened to me. She told me that if we ever feel a sudden wave of exhaustion, clamminess or dehydration when we shouldn't, to get in contact with anyone in the house ASAP, as those are the indicators," Faith informed her.

"Gotcha," Buffy nodded, before falling silent and playing with the corner of the book. Sighing, she reached over to her night table and pulled open the drawer. Reaching in, she withdrew two envelopes and handed them to Faith.

"What's this?" Faith asked, but was given no reply.

Opening the first one, she found herself looking at a card with two pictures on a white background. The first was a spring, the second was a chicken. Opening the card, Faith read the words, "You ain't" and couldn't stop the smile from appearing on her features. The flowing script of Willow's handwriting declaring "Happy Birthday, Faith!" explained the reason behind all the different names that were scrawled, printed and signed on it. _Damn, that Summers girl is gonna get it_. Sighing, Faith looked up at Buffy,

"I didn't want people to know," Faith explained, a mixture of anger and thankfulness in her voice.

"Well, at least they didn't make it into a big deal," Buffy rationalized, smiling gently.

Faith cocked her head to one side, "Point."

"Open the other one," Buffy urged Faith, poking the brunette in the shoulder with her toe.

Faith paused in the act of opening to give Buffy a look saying, "Don't touch me with those feet," before opening the card up. The cover was also a simple one, a beautiful picture of a sunset over the mountains was the only thing on it. Opening it, Faith found that the card was an empty one, allowing for the buyer to write whatever they chose. In it, was Buffy's print and cursive script stating,

"You calm me like this sunset, and yet keep me fired up like the sun itself. Not to wax poetic on you or anything. Happy Birthday, Faith, hope it ended better than it started. Always, Buffy."

Faith swallowed the lump in her throat. "_Always," now isn't that an accidental way of yanking in the history with Angel?_ Looking up at the blonde, Faith smiled,

"Thank you, this is wonderful."

Buffy smiled back, "Hold on."

Faith watched the blonde get off the bed and move to the closet. Sliding a door open, Buffy pulled out a plastic bag. Pulling out a rectangular wrapped shape from it, she shoved the bag back into the closet and shut it. Sitting back down on the bed, she handed the gift to Faith.

"B, I…"

"Faith, it's small and simple, not big or expensively huge. It's a gift, from everyone, or rather from those that have known you the longest," Buffy gave her a stern look before relaxing and smiling again, "Now open it."

Not needing to be told twice, Faith carefully ripped the paper off, revealing the back of a picture frame. Turning it over, Faith felt the lump in her throat return at the image before her. She barely remembered Andrew holding the camera that afternoon, but it didn't matter. What mattered was what was proven in the picture she held before her- she was finally accepted into a family unit.

The picture itself was one that could've been taken on several different occasions over the fall on the patio. Faith was in a lounge chair, a bottle of Corona in her hand, her head thrown back as she laughed at something that Xander had just said. Buffy was leaning over the top of the chair, grinning. The lack of personal space was evident, yet both appeared to be comfortable. Willow was leaning back into Kennedy's arms on another lounge chair, laughing as well, while Xander sat in a plastic chair, leaning forward, telling a joke, a Sam Adams dangling from one hand. Sandra was standing to his left holding a hand to her mouth as she laughed, a Guinness held lightly in her free hand, while Dawn was sitting on the floor, leaning back, her head angling down slightly as she chuckled, a Diet Pepsi creating a ring of condensation beside her.

Faith blinked, fighting off the wave of emotion before looking up at Buffy, who had a gentle smile on her face.

"Look at the bottom corner of the picture," Buffy implored.

Faith looked back down at the photo and saw Willow's neat handwriting titling the picture- "The Scooby Gang Family, Fall '07". _And again with the barrage of emotion_, looking up, Faith murmured,

"Buffy…I don't know how…thank you."

Buffy's face broke out into a huge smile, "You're very welcome."


	16. Progression Part 2

_Faith shook herself, as if shocking herself awake. Things felt muddled, but that did not worry her. Instead, all of her senses honed in on the sudden appearance of a short blonde from across the… what? There was no real floor, and Buffy's sudden appearance also did not worry her. Who knew how much time had passed, but Faith had the distinct impression that she was currently kissing the blonde slayer, and just when she knew things were going to get far more interesting…_Faith jolted awake.

Groaning, Faith started to roll onto her back from her side when she realized that her right arm was being held against Buffy's chest by the smaller woman's hand, and she had somehow ended up spooned around the blonde. _How did this happen?_ As far as she could remember, Faith had almost always woken up before Buffy- being used to early starts after four years on her own, and three years before that in a state prison- and never once had she woken up curled around the other slayer. Realizing that there was no way to tactfully extricate herself from the grasp of the other woman without accidentally waking her, Faith sighed and relaxed back into the position. She tensed upon feeling Buffy slightly readjust herself in her sleep, before relaxing again and deciding to just see what happened when she woke up later.

Fate, as it seems, deemed this morning to be the one where Faith slept in more than usual, and Buffy woke up earlier than usual. Rousing from sleep, Faith squinted at the light from the deck doors bathing the room in a bright glow, wondering why it was unusually bright for the early morning. It took her a second to realize that she must have slept in, _shit, what if she's awake?_ Deciding to go for broke, Faith leaned up and over Buffy's shoulder, and saw her eyes shut, _that doesn't mean shit._ Pulling back slightly, Faith whispered Buffy's name in her ear.

"Mmm, five more minutes," Buffy mumbled in a barely coherent language. _Was that even English?_

Flexing her fingers slightly to test the strength of Buffy's death grip on her hand, Faith accidentally brushed them along the inside curve of the blonde's breasts, causing the smaller slayer to shift in her sleep. _Oh God…_Faith squeezed her eyes shut, hoping a lack of visual acuity would stave off the sudden burst of the hornies. Realizing she would have to slide her hand down and around Buffy's breasts and over her side helped in completing a full failure in not becoming turned on. _This is so not good. _Trying to go slow in order to keep Buffy from waking up, Faith quickly realized that this only amplified the current sexual dilemma she was in. When she was almost fully free from Buffy's now gentle grasp, Faith noticed that her breathing patterns had changed, _she's awake! Oh shit, shit, shit! Now what do I do?!?_ Quickly deciding that freezing where she was without saying anything or moving her hand quickly away guiltily were both bad courses of action, Faith leaned up to Buffy's ear again, "I know you're awake."

Watching the blonde swallow, Faith saw her nod slightly.

"I would just like to inform you that we woke up like this," Faith continued, slowly getting her hand fully off of Buffy's body.

"Did you ever wake up with me like this before?" Buffy asked quietly.

"No," Faith replied. "This is the first time."

"Okay," Buffy murmured, then, changing the conversation to something safer, "Do you want to take a shower first, or can I?"

"You can grab your own, I'll use the one down the hall if no one else is in it," Faith answered, pulling away in an attempt to calm her raging hormones.

Sitting at the edge of the bed, Faith rubbed her eyes before standing up. Turning to look over at Buffy, Faith saw that she had rolled onto her back and was watching her calmly. _Yeah, 'cause this isn't awkward enough._ Grabbing a change of underwear and a t-shirt and jeans, Faith nodded to Buffy once as she left the room. _Maybe a cold shower would be a good idea_, she mused as she walked down the hall.

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Twenty minutes later, Faith was downstairs in the kitchen, making herself a cup of coffee when Willow came inside the front door with the paper. Turning to go sit at a high table, Faith took in Giles' sipping a cup of tea, another beside him, idly staring out the window.

"Hey Giles, been awake long?" Faith greeted, taking a seat across from him.

"An hour or so, I trust that you slept well?" Giles smiled, _so not the right question to ask._ Giles had arrived two days ago for Christmas, bringing Dawn's boyfriend Peter and Andrew's boyfriend Dan along with him.

"I did, thanks," Faith replied, sipping her coffee.

As Willow took a seat, Giles continued, "I hope your current sleeping situations are not too awkward for you."

Faith ticked her gaze to Willow, who looked up from the paper in front of her at Faith.

"It's better than many that I've had," Faith answered before grabbing the Sports section to read, subtly ending the inquiries.

About ten minutes later, Buffy appeared in the kitchen, grabbing a mug of coffee before plopping herself down beside Faith, her focus anywhere but. Faith noticed that Willow had picked up on the awkwardness, and glanced over at Buffy, signaling Willow to talk to her. Willow nodded silently before going back to her reading. Giles lifted his gaze from a book that he was reading and warmly greeted Buffy, who greeted him back before turning her attention to downing her coffee and going off to get more.

"Oh hey, Faith," Willow put down the paper, grabbing the rogue slayer's attention, "Enough people chipped in for that pool table, so we'll be getting it. I figured you would like to check out exactly what one to purchase, so you can come with me in a few days to go get one."

"Sounds good," Faith replied, "Oh hey, do we have any last minute things to do before tomorrow?"

"I wanted to hang Christmas lights in my room," Buffy replied as she came back to sit down.

"Kinda cutting it short, huh B? Christmas is tomorrow," Faith smirked.

"Trust me, it's worth it," Buffy responded, sipping her coffee.

"All right, I'll help you with it then, but later, I need all my neurons functioning for it," Faith informed her.

"How long does it take all twelve of them to be fully functioning?" Buffy taunted, _ouch_.

Willow snorted while Giles' lips twitched slightly, as he fought off a smile.

"Some are really slow, B," Faith joked back, "They're back burners."

"Thus explaining the low number," the zingers just kept coming, and Faith thought it might be both a mixture of awkwardness and an attempt to regain the comfort level the pair usually had.

"Okay, I'm drinking my coffee in the living room now," Faith ended the banter, stood with her part of the paper and exited the room.

Slumping down into the oversized chair in the corner of the room, Faith sipped her coffee as she thumbed her way through the Sports section. It wasn't that interesting, she'd only ever cared about the Red Sox, and no other sport other than baseball ever captivated her. Refolding the section, Faith dropped it to the floor beside her before finishing off her coffee and placing it atop it. Watching the snow outside swirl around in the wind, Faith felt her eyes grow heavy and allowed them to slip shut, _just for a moment, nothing's happening anyway_.

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Faith's senses alerted her into consciousness when she felt a pair of hands grip her shoulders. Without registering her surroundings, Faith shot out of her chair and pinned the as-of-yet unknown person against the couch in front of her, their back bending back along the top of the couch from the arm. Hearing her name, Faith shook the cobwebs from her brain and realized that it was Buffy beneath her.

"B, what…Why did you wake me up?" Faith asked, her voice laden with sleep.

"You…you've been asleep for over an hour, I came in to wake you up…" Buffy looked down, causing Faith to follow suit, and saw that she had pinned Buffy fully by pushing her thigh between the blonde's legs.

Feeling the coals from this morning being raked over, Faith shut her eyes for a moment, only to open them when Buffy spoke.

"Faith, do you think you could let me go?" The lilting in her voice allowed Faith to guess the reasoning behind the request- aside from the fact that Faith did not need to hold her down anymore.

Leaning down closer to Buffy's ear, Faith felt her old personality push its way to the surface, and allowed a sexual smirk to spread across her face. Shifting her thigh slightly, Faith increased the pressure against Buffy, and felt the blonde arch her body in response, before she quickly turned her head to the dining room, where several people were seated, unawares of what was occurring in the next room.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Faith murmured, her lips tickling Buffy's ear, causing a shudder to run through the blonde, "Too afraid of them seeing this, aren't you?" When she finished speaking, Faith dipped her tongue into the shell of Buffy's ear, and heard a soft sigh emanate from the smaller woman before she cleared her throat.

"No, Faith…that's not it…" Buffy replied, turning to look back at the dark slayer.

_I could take you right now, and you wouldn't stop me, would you B?_ Faith thought, before pulling back slightly and then adding more pressure between Buffy's legs. This time, Buffy's throat hummed as she fought back a groan.

"Faith," Her voice was slightly more desperate, "Not here." _Meaning somewhere else?_

Seeing the look of worry and uncertainty in Buffy's eyes sobered Faith and she pulled away, moving back towards the chair, giving Buffy plenty of breathing room. Picking up her mug and the paper, Faith exited with a last look at Buffy, not in any mood to apologize.

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As she was about to go up the stairs to help Buffy later on- after an extensive day of tactfully avoiding her without appearing as if she was- Faith was stopped by Willow, who called out to her from her study. Following her inside, Faith leaned against a bookcase and folded her arms under her chest, waiting for the redhead to explain why she had called her in.

"Okay, so, this is going to sound a bit weird, but- I talked to two Buffy's today," Willow started, _yeah, I'd say that's weird_, "But before you ask, let me explain. After you had gone into the living room this morning, Buffy and I spoke in here. She informed me of how you guys woke up and that she wasn't sure what to do exactly, as in, whether to attempt to take the next step with you by actually, you know, talking to you, or whether she should just let things go a little longer. Now, I know, I wanted to hit her for that 'little longer' idea because, honestly, how much longer can she drag you along before you get fed up and do something rash?" Faith swallowed, feeling guilty suddenly, upon remembering the events that took place when Buffy had woken her up.

"Buffy, with all of her attributes, can be a little thick sometimes, and she occasionally needs something to shock her into realizing what choice to make. Granted, this doesn't usually happen in relation to apocalypses, but rather, well… the rest of her life," Willow continued, causing Faith to smirk at the last comment, "She came back to talk to me again after she went to wake you," _Oh fuck._ "And let me tell you, her personality had shifted considerably. She explained what happened- and before you get all defensive, because I know very well what happens when you are woken via physical touch, she wasn't angry. If anything, you had made her much more decisive and determined."

Faith smiled softly, "Shocked her, huh?" _Oh, the double entendre_.

"Just a bit," Willow smiled back, "So just uh, expect a change soon, 'cause you- oh how can I say this tactfully- you woke her up to what she really wants to do. Not that she didn't know before, it's just, you pushed her over that edge finally."

"Finally," Faith murmured back.

"Yeah, took you long enough."

"Hey, I thought this was all up to Buffy? I had to wait for her!" Faith shot back, now defensive.

"Well, I didn't figure she'd be such a lightweight," Willow shrugged, "You know, with Angel and the others, she didn't pitter-patter around for four months, or four years, however you want to gauge it."

"Okay, okay. Thanks for telling me. I gotta go upstairs and help her hang those lights, so I'll see you at dinner," Faith stood up straight from where she was leaning against the bookcase, and left, climbing the stairs two at a time.

When she finally arrived on the top floor, Faith took her time walking down the hall, and peeked into Giles' room where she saw him taking notes from some dusty volume that she figured had a) come with him from England; b) was made the moment Guttenberg had perfected the movable type; and c) probably should be read while using an air filtering mask. When she came upon the double doors that signified both the end of the hallway and the beginning of Buffy's master bedroom, Faith pushed open the slightly ajar door and shuffled her way inside. Her eyes fell upon the bed where Buffy sat, lit up like a Christmas tree, with about four strings of lights plugged together in knots around her.

"Now all we need are for those things to be blinking and a camera, and this moment would be perfect," Faith commented, grabbing the blonde's attention.

"Yeah, they don't have that function sadly," Buffy replied, freeing a small knot only to find a bigger one after it, "This is going to take forever."

"Why don't you separate them all first and untangle them that way, then plug them back together?" Faith came over to the bed, about to unplug the first plug she found.

"Then I wouldn't be able to see if any lights were out," Buffy informed her.

"Uh, B? And you think you can in this mess?" Faith smirked at the slow realization that appeared on Buffy's face before continuing, "Trust me, much easier in a straight line, then a big clump."

"You make a decent point," Buffy mused.

"You're welcome," Faith answered the unspoken "thank you" and began searching for the cord endings.

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"Okay, so, just hand me that piece of tape and I'll be all set with this wall," Faith looked down at Buffy from the step ladder and grabbed the tape Buffy held up to her, "Okay, good. Three down, one to go."

As Buffy set up a chair further down from Faith and the pair began pulling up the lights for the last wall. Buffy cleared her throat and began to broach a topic that Faith had wondered if it would ever be brought up.

"So, about today…"

"Yeah."

"And us…"

"Yeah?"

"We need to talk," Buffy looked over at Faith as they climbed down and moved further along the wall.

"I think so too," Faith figured that sarcasm would not go over well at this moment, and kept it serious.

"Okay."

The pair fell silent for a couple of minutes, moving down yet again to the last section that they had to put up, and Faith finally spoke.

"Will it be this century?"

"Yeah, sorry, I'm just trying to think of what to say," Buffy shook her head, and smiled.

_Why do I have a feeling this is going to fall into Buffy-speak and be very convoluted when it doesn't have to be?_

Stepping down from her chair, Buffy put it near the door before turning to look back at Faith.

"Okay, so, I don't know exactly what do or say. I mean, I know what you want, and I know what I want, but I'm not fully sure you want…"

"Buffy! Use a complete thought!" Faith cut in, _just fucking say it._

"Do you want to be together?" Buffy burst out.

"As in, in a relationship?" Faith inquired back, wanting things to be completely clear.

Buffy nodded mutely.

"Definitely."

Faith watched Buffy take a big gulp of air and exhale, "Good, 'cause I want that too."

"Kinda figured from the question itself, but thanks for clearing that up," Faith winked at Buffy to show her she meant no harm in the comment.

Buffy smiled, then became serious, "So, what now?"

"Hmm, well…I'd say, you bring that chair back to Dawn's, and I'll drag the ladder back downstairs. How's that for taking the next step?" Faith smirked.

"Well, okay, but I was really asking about…"

"I know what you meant. Why don't we just let that happen when it wants to happen?" Faith replied, folding the ladder up and turning it on its side.

"Okay, sounds good to me," Buffy nodded and picked up Dawn's chair before hooking her foot around the edge of the door and flipping it wide open, Faith following closely behind.

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Faith awoke early the next morning to what felt like an earthquake. Looking around, Faith realized that six girls hopping on the edge of the bed would make anyone think that. Groaning, Faith sat up rubbing her eyes with her hands.

"You little gremlins, what time it is?"

"It's Christmas!" Kate exclaimed hopping harder and moving closer to the two women, the second of which was glaring at the troupe from beneath her pillow.

"That's not a time, that's a holiday. Is it before 5?" Buffy grumbled next to Faith.

"No, it's 5:30!" Jack replied, "Faith told us last night to not come in here before 5, or else Santa wouldn't come."

"Faith's a smart woman, but she should've said 7," Buffy replied.

"Oh come on B, when you were little, didn't you get up before the sun came up?" Faith pushed the blonde in the side playfully, helping in rolling her over, "C'mon guys, help me get this old crone outta bed."

"Old crone... why you…" But Buffy's insult could never finish, as Jack, Dana, Kate, Lynn, Britt and Jess scrambled over and started tugging at Buffy, pulling her out of bed, "Okay, okay! I'm up and out of bed, now go on, go get your stockings together; no one can open them unless _everyone_ is up, okay? So go get everyone down into the living room! And keep the other kids out of those presents until we get down there!"

The group let out an excited scream and ran out the bedroom, splitting up to bombard Xander and Andrew's rooms in groups of threes.

"You are evil. Dawn and Xander will kill you when they realize that this was your idea," Faith remarked, pulling on a pair of pajama bottoms.

"Yeah, well, only Willow can complain. She, you and I were up until 3 putting all those presents out there. If I have to deal with two and a half hours of sleep, then so does she," Buffy shot back as she went into the bathroom.

When Buffy came out, looking more awake, Faith followed suit and went in. Exiting the bathroom, Faith shut off the light and went over to the door, where Buffy was waiting for her. As she went to move past, Buffy grabbed her arm. A question in her eyes, Faith looked back at the blonde, but Buffy merely pointed up. _You little sneak,_ Faith thought, eyeing the mistletoe. Faith shook her head, and wrapped her arms around Buffy's waist, pulling her close.

"Merry Christmas," Faith whispered against Buffy's slightly parted lips before she kissed her softly, _a taste of things to come._

A few minutes later, Faith was staring at the coffee maker as a new brew slurped its way into the pot, the kettle on the stove behind her rumbling quietly. She was leaning on the island, her chin planted in her hands, staring across the kitchen, when Sandra stumbled in.

"It won't come out any faster if you stare at it, hon" Sandra commented, pulling out two mugs from the cabinets.

"You never know. It might feel bad for me today," Faith replied, not breaking her gaze.

A loud squeal came from the living room suddenly, as the sound of kids attacking their stockings started up.

"Okay, they were cute until today," Faith broke her gaze and glanced over in the direction of the living room.

"Mmmm, sucked you in, didn't they? Noisy little buggers," Sandra hugged herself, taking up the staring job.

A thud of footsteps signaled Xander's late arrival down the stairs.

"Morning love, impeccable timing you have."

"The coffee is ready?" Xander asked hopefully.

"Nope," Sandra shook her head.

"Then why impeccable?" Xander scratched his head before patting Faith on the shoulder in greeting.

"Because you have timed it just right, to come down here mere moments before the kids start opening presents," Sandra informed him, an evil smirk on her face.

Faith watched Xander pale suddenly, "Oh God no. Get me out of here."

"Nope, gotta stay and suffer with the rest of us," Sandra grabbed his arm as Xander turned back towards the stairs, "C'mon, Faith'll let us know when the coffee is ready, let's go on out there," Leaving the mugs on the counter, Sandra pulled Xander out into the hallway with her and disappeared around the corner.

Faith shook her head, grinning as they left. Turning to look at the coffee, she saw it finishing up, and pulled out a tray from one of the lower cabinets. Yanking the kettle off of the burner right before it started to blow; she pulled out a creamer and the jar of sugar and put them on the tray, as well as six mugs. Putting an herbal teabag in one mug and an Earl Grey teabag in another, Faith poured the hot water into the two separate mugs. Grabbing the pot of coffee, Faith filled the four other empty mugs and started making another pot, leaving five empty mugs on the counter. She pulled out a handful of spoons and put them on the tray before lifting it and exiting the kitchen. A series of shrikes from the living room told her that the presents were being opened, and she decided to come in the side entrance next to the front door to avoid spilling.

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To say that the day was good would be an understatement. Faith lay sprawled out on the couch, the crown of her head pressed against Dawn's thigh, her hand idly playing with loose hairs that hung down from Buffy's bun from where she sat on floor in front of the couch. Peter was sitting on the arm of the couch, leaning into Dawn; While Xander had crashed face first on the floor, Sandra cradling his head in her lap. Giles was sitting in a small, plush chair, while Willow and Kennedy had squeezed themselves into the big, comfy one. To finish it off, Andrew sat on the loveseat with Dan's legs thrown across his own, rubbing his bare feet.

"The next person who screams, I will kill them, I don't care if they are eleven," Kennedy moaned.

"I'm with you on that one," Xander chimed in, his voice muffled by Sandra's pant leg.

Before anyone else spoke the phones in both Andrew's study and the kitchen began to ring.

"Oh God, I don't have the energy to get that," Buffy groaned, leaning her head back against Faith's palm.

As the answering machine clicked on, Angels' voiced floated through the house, and suddenly the group jerked into motion. Kennedy got to the phone in the kitchen first, and caught Angel before he hung up.

"Hey, Angel, it's Ken, yeah, she's here, hold on," Kennedy covered the mouthpiece and lowered the phone, "Buffy, Angel wants to talk to you."

Buffy came in, Faith right behind her, and took the phone from Kennedy, "Hey Angel…thanks, you too. Any snow in L.A., or is that wishful thinking?"

Faith smirked and turned to leave, before Buffy grabbed her arm, signaling that she didn't want her to go, "Yeah, the kids were crazy, but they loved everything. Yeah, we all got some good stuff here."

Faith zoned out as Buffy continued talking with the vampire, and began loading the dishwasher. A few minutes later, Faith came too, hearing the end of the conversation, "Yeah, she's right here, yup. Thanks for calling; I'll pass along your happy wishes to the group. All right, bye."

Buffy held the phone out to Faith, who glanced down at it and then shrugged. Wiping her hands on her jeans, Faith grabbed the phone from Buffy and watched her exit before raising it to her ear, "Hey Big A, how's the undead life treating you?"

"Hey Faith," Angel replied, ignoring the question, "How are things?"

"Progressing," Faith replied vaguely, picking up a pen and doodling on a piece of paper.

"Care to specify?" Angel prodded gently.

"What, not explicit enough for ya?" Faith countered, enjoying her several stick figures.

"Faith…" Angel sighed, and Faith could just imagine him leaning back in his chair, shutting his eyes to remain calm.

"She and I are…just getting together, all right?" Faith replied curtly, "Is Dr. Phil happy with his quarterly assessment?"

"Faith, I didn't mean to upset you…" Angel replied, sighing again.

"I know, it's just… this is a touchy subject, or it has been for the past four months, and there has finally been a breakthrough and, well, I don't want to jinx it or anything," Faith stopped drawing the mustache on one stick figure and sighed.

"Okay, okay, I get it; I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I know this was a big thing for you," Angel stated, "And I'm glad things are coming together for the two of you."

"No you aren't, she's your ex," Faith shot back.

"That was a long time ago, and we both accepted that we couldn't be together like that. What's to make me upset if she can find someone who she can be with, that can make her happy and grow old with her? Just because I love her doesn't mean that I won't let anyone else have her if I can't."

"Okay, gotcha, you're five-by-five with the whole Buffy and Faith couple thing. Got it," Faith leaned against the counter, looking out in to the hall hoping no one was eavesdropping.

Faith hung up a few minutes later after wishing him a Happy New Year, and went back out into the living room, only to find it deserted. Shrugging, Faith went back upstairs to Buffy's room, and proceeded to strip without care for something to sleep in, _let her see the Fully Monty for all I care_, and crashed face first on the bed, pulling the covers up around her, the steady sound of the shower running lulling her to sleep.

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It was mid afternoon the next day when Faith entered Willow's study, realizing just how cramped eleven people could make it, and squeezed past Kennedy and Peter to stand near the side entrance, where Xander was leaning on the open doorframe.

"All right guys, I know this is cramped, but I don't want the kids hearing any of this," Willow began, "I got a call from the Coven in England late last night…"

"Evil women…" Kennedy murmured, creating a quiet rumbling of laughter in the group before they all fell silent again to listen to Willow.

"There seems to be a slight breakthrough on information for this Shadow Lands dimension that the Kartuk are going to use. We already know that they need the life force of the two Chose Ones in order to power their whole apocalypse, which is slightly ironic, considering your job is to stop them, but that's beside the point," Willow rambled slightly, then shook her head to refocus, "What the Coven told me was that the Kartuk are using various passive demon breeds to create some sort of dimensional portal in fragments, which will all be brought together here, kind of like the Judge," Willow nodded towards Buffy and Giles, whose faces looked grim, "Except that they used the Toalith to start their power source early so that they would have a head start on creating the apocalypse by the time that all of the pieces came together."

Willow fell silent and Andrew spoke up, "That's why you had the Gincii demons in Taipei attacking you. They were already creating this portal thing when you got there and were trying to keep you from discovering it, for fear of being wiped out by the Kartuk. You probably only got that one clan, the rest of the clans most likely worked harder after you left to finish on schedule. The Toalith demons however, knew that we were here, so I'm guessing that a large Slayer HQ nearby was either a great deterrent in them becoming violent in any way, or they may just want to try to stop this as much as we do. What we know about the apocalypse is that there are going to be at least two more spikes in life force fluctuations before it happens, so we can gauge our timeframe, unfortunately, by that. After the last spike, it should be less than a week before all hell, literally, breaks loose."

"In order to stop this, I conferred with as many of my contacts as I could reach," Giles began, "And many agreed that we need to do a two stemmed assault when the Kartuk are at their weakest, i.e., when they are starting the apocalypse. I know, that is cutting it short," Giles pulled off his glasses and rubbed them, stopping mid-sentence, "But we have no other choice. One front will be using magick. The Coven will be flying over after the second spike, and will team up with Willow to work on that part of the assault. The rest of us will split up into two groups to attack the demons themselves. One group will be a diversion at the front of their lair and the other will attack from the back and sides. The only problem rests on finding out where they are, as they can be a highly mobile breed of demon." Falling silent, Giles put his glasses back on and glanced around.

"So we just need to get their correct location for the apocalypse date, and we're good?" Buffy asked.

Willow and Giles both nodded, and Buffy shifted her feet, "Okay, then that's what our focus will be, finding them."


	17. February 13

There are few days throughout the course of a year that have the ability to cause couples to groan in frustration at the way in which society dictates what they should do on that day. Valentine's Day is one of them. In the past, Valentine's Day had never meant much to Faith. Throughout her time in school it had meant candy, flowers, or seeing the vast majority of boys spending the small amount of money that they had on the girls that they liked or were dating. As she grew up, Faith came to detest this day, if only for the expectations put upon men and women to act more romantic, or spend that much more money. However, Faith currently found herself lying on her back on Xander's bed, her head hanging off the edge, listening to him talk about Sandra's favorite flowers, and how he was going to send them to her at the police headquarters she worked for part-time, and found herself starting to like this holiday- if only because she finally had someone to share it with.

"…and I know that she'd kill me if I sent her chocolates, so my master plan will be to take her out to dinner," Xander finished, Faith tuning back in at the end of him explaining his plans.

"Sounds solid, and sweet," Faith smiled gently and rolled over onto her stomach, needing the blood to drain from her head.

"So…" Xander trailed off, "You doing anything for Buffy?"

Faith blinked, and felt a small knot form in her stomach, "Uhh, I hadn't really thought about it. Should I?"

Xander shrugged, "Buffy would never ask for chocolates, but she loves them anyway. A bouquet would be too over the top for her, and an extravagant night out isn't her style."

"Or mine for that matter…" Faith nodded, "So, simple then?"

Xander stood for a moment, thinking, then nodded, "Yeah, simple would work, but only do what you know both of you would be comfortable with, because well... where the hell do you two stand?"

The question popped out of nowhere, and Faith was silent a moment, processing it, "Well…it's complicated."

"You sleep in the same bed, you are, quote, unquote, couplely- but nothing's happening. At least nothing I know of…" Xander smirked.

"Yeah…same bed…" Faith mused, ignoring Xander's comment.

"Dear God Faith, you sound like you're not getting any…" Xander laughed, then he saw the look she shot him, and a look of surprise crossed his faced, "Wait, are you serious? You've been in the same bed for… something like three and a half months, and you are seriously telling me that the infamously sexual Faith is not having sex?"

"I'm as pious as a nun, but that doesn't mean that nothing is happening," Faith allowed a sly grin to spread across her features, her brain thinking back to the many heated necking sessions they'd had, as well as how they always fell asleep in each other's arms now.

"So then what is up with you two?" Xander inquired, still grinning from Faith's answer.

"We're together," Faith shrugged, "And we don't question much more than that. Not right now."

"So no L word?" Xander asked.

"She doesn't watch it," Faith answered, grinning, "But yeah, something like that. We've lived too long thinking we may not survive the night, so the future isn't something we want to plan right now, considering we're both guinea pigs in the most recent apocalypse attempt."

"Good point. All right, I gotta head out to the construction site to make sure everything is going smoothly, and then I've got the grocery run this week, so I'll be back early this afternoon. If you want, when I get back, you can come with me when I go to set up my flower order for tomorrow."

"Sure," Faith shrugged, standing up and following Xander to the door.

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Faith was in the meditation room in the barn, sweat making her Under Armor ride up underneath her t-shirt. She had just completed two laps of the Gauntlet, including the obstacle course, and was now in here to calm her thoughts and to relax. Stripping off her t-shirt and the Under Armor, Faith kicked off her running shoes and socks before taking a calming breath as she moved to the center of the room to do some Tai Chi exercises. After being interrupted several times by younger slayers in the training room in the mansion's basement, Faith had decided to come out here, where almost no one would practice, except, she was told, during the summer months.

Tai Chi had come in handy when she was severely injured after averting an apocalypse in Mongolia almost two full years ago. Not that she didn't do it regularly anyway, but Angel had told her of its aid in healing, and she couldn't help but agree after being beaten heavily in the final battle against a small group of D'intik demons. That was her second of three apocalypses that she had averted almost single handedly, and she had grown up quite a bit after that battle, due to the leadership placed upon her shoulders when she had a small band of fighters working with her- many of which died in the fight. Her guilt over their deaths, knowing she was in charge of them, harkened back to Sunnydale when she had led the potentials into the winery- and into a bomb-laden trap- and grounded her quite a bit.

Faith felt Buffy's presence as the blonde Slayer entered the barn, her thoughts about the events that went down in Mongolia dissipating as the Slayer connection jolted her slightly in her exercises. She could feel Buffy watching her as she slowly came to a finish, noticing the sweat glistening along her arms. She could feel beads dribbling slowly down between her breasts, soaking the bottom of her sports bra. Inhaling deeply, Faith breathed out through her mouth, opening her eyes to the blonde standing in the doorway. Striding over, Faith smiled in greeting and walked out into the training room, grabbing her shirts and shoes as she passed Buffy, who followed her.

"What's up B? Seeking me out in secluded places…people will talk…" Faith joked, glancing back over her shoulder, glad to see a reciprocating grin on the other woman's face.

"They already do, so what's the point?" Buffy replied as she came to a stop to Faith's left when the dark slayer turned on the faucet at the sink in the medical area and splashed cold water on her face.

Faith could feel Buffy's eyes burning into her as she lifted handfuls of water to the back and front of her neck and splashed it against her sweating body. Turning the water off, Faith rubbed a hand over her face to clear off any excess water and turned to the blonde. She could feel the small rivulets of water torturously trailing down her heated skin, cooling mere fractions of her body- leaving the rest to burn. Smiling knowingly at the other woman, Faith turned and pulled on her shirts pulled yanking on her socks and shoes. As the pair walked towards the doors that would lead out to the yard, Faith stopped and turned to Buffy.

"Hey, is there anything specific you might want tomorrow?"

"I uhh…" Buffy stopped, and Faith noticed how surprised she was, "Well, I didn't know that you were thinking of doing anything, but no. I like surprises."

"All right," Faith nodded and resumed walking, "You got any plans for tomorrow?"

Buffy shot her a look, "Maybe."

Faith grinned, "I can work with 'maybe'."

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As Faith entered the mansion with Buffy a few minutes later, they both looked at each other upon hearing several voices sounding slightly alarmed. When someone said "go get Buffy" the pair moved quickly into the living room where the commotion was and looked around. Faith saw Willow, Andrew and Tracy looking over at them, and a small Toalith demon standing in the middle of the room, in front of the television. Moving around the couch, Buffy spoke first.

"What's going on?" Her eyes fell to the Toalith demon, and Faith could see that she was wary, her eyes assessing the situation quickly.

"This Toalith demon came to our door, asking for you two," Andrew explained.

"I have a name," the Toalith demon spoke up, and suddenly Faith realized that this was a mere youngling, not an adult.

"What is it?" Faith asked.

"T'wanii. I'm the last of the clan in the area. All of the rest of my clan has been completely wiped out by the Kartuk," the demon replied, immediately launching into his explanation for being at the mansion.

"Why did they kill your clan?" Buffy asked.

"They were angry that we had given you information. We had thought that maybe our assistance would not become known to them, and my clan paid the price of doubling crossing this violent breed. I am here to ask for refuge from the Kartuk. As you can tell, I am not yet what my clan would have called a warrior adult. Until I am, or until the Kartuk are dissolved, I ask for protection," T'wanii explained.

"Why would a demon willingly ask for human assistance and shelter?" Willow asked.

T'wanii turned to look at her, "I have heard tales told by my parents about how the group that resides here has worked with and helped other demons, and even some vampires. I do not know the circumstances surrounding those instances, but if those tales are true, then I think that my request isn't that shocking. I cannot protect myself from the Kartuk, or any of the other breeds that prey upon pacifist demons, but if you need any encouragement in agreeing, then I can tell you that I do have inside information on the Kartuk and their plan, as well as the spell that they are using on the two Chosen Ones. My parents felt it was necessary to tell me in case anything ever happened to them," T'wanii blinked, and Faith realized that it was the first time he had done so.

Buffy glanced over at Faith and Willow before nodding, "You can stay with us, but the only bedroom we have is in our separate mansion."

"I need a cool space, not a bedroom," T'wanii corrected, looking less nervous and almost relieved at Buffy's acceptance.

"I can convert part of the barn into living quarters for you, it is very cool right now, and you will not be disturbed by many people. Can you move in the daylight?" Buffy inquired.

"Yes, but I prefer the shadows. The sun hurts my eyes, as it does to every Toalith demon," T'wanii replied.

"Well, there is a back entrance into the woods in the barn, which gives you plenty of shade when necessary, and a trail is nearby that can lead you up to the house," Buffy explained, "What about food?"

"Most anything. I can survive on regular human foods, but if you could keep a constant store of vegetables, I would be most grateful. That is my main source of food," T'wanii answered.

"That can be arranged, I'll make sure we have an extra stock of vegetables for you," Buffy nodded, then, seeing Willow gesturing for her to talk in private, continued, "Faith can show you to your quarters, and I'll have Andrew bring out some bed linens for you. Come up here whenever you choose. If you'll excuse me, I have to go," Buffy nodded at T'wanii, and followed Willow quickly out of the room.

Faith watched her leave before her eyes fell upon the small demon, "I'm Faith," Faith opened, T'wanii's attention quickly shifting to her, "Follow me."

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Faith yelled to Andrew that she and T'wanii were in the meditation room when he entered the barn shortly after she and the demon had arrived. She had shown him around, pointed out the second entrance in the meditation room, the running sink, and various other things, including an emergency phone used to connect directly to the house phone- to be used only when and if necessary.

"All right. I brought a sleeping bag for padding, as well as an eggshell mat, and a pillow and sheets. You can use whatever you want, I wasn't sure what to bring, so I just went all out," Andrew explained quickly, dropping the sleeping bag and rolled up mat to the floor, placing the pillow on top of them and the sheets on top of the pillow, "Oh, and if you're hungry, you can come in and eat whenever you choose, but if you want to meet the people who live here, everyone will be in the dining room around 7."

"Thank you," T'wanii replied quietly, watching Andrew nod awkwardly before leaving the pair.

"He's just a quirky guy, don't worry about him acting all weird around you," Faith explained after Andrew had left.

"I understand how it can be odd for humans to look past the visage of a demon. I have heard tales of similar issues humans have had with themselves," T'wanii shrugged, pulling open the eggshell mat and laying it out.

"Still have, unfortunately," Faith replied in agreement, "I'm surprised you have learned about humans."

"Why? It is necessary for us to understand you in order to survive alongside you. It is the same for all living things capable of thinking rationally," T'wanii explained, tossing the sleeping bag on top of the mat.

"You speak as if you are far older than you look," Faith mused, surprised at very mature response he had given her.

"I am," T'wanii replied shortly, "My growth rate and lifespan are both far slower and longer than any human's. While your kind may be a teenager from the ages of 12-19, my breed enter that same growth span from somewhere around 53 until 87- human years at least. So I am older than you, yet I am not as physically mature."

Faith nodded in understanding, "I see, I've seen quite a few demon breeds like that."

"It is a common thing in the demon world, I am not surprised that you have encountered it," T'wanii replied as he finished making his sleeping area, Now, I need to rest; it has been a long few days for me. I will come inside after the sun sets, and speak more with you and the others if need be."

Faith smiled gently, "No rush, please, rest up."

Faith left silently, her mind racing. _He could seriously help us in this battle against the Kartuk, provided that he knows enough information- or even the right information._

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Faith was tossing the second of three salads for dinner when Sandra came in, asking where Dawn and Tracy were.

"I haven't seen them since before I left to go out with Xander," Faith shrugged, glancing out the window into the darkness that filled the yard.

"That's odd. Hey Andrew, do you know when Dawn and Trey left? Or even where they went?" Sandra asked when Andrew ambled into the kitchen.

"Uhh, they went to get candy for the other kids for tomorrow. They left around 4:30, I think," Andrew replied, stopping to reply before moving to the stove to stir the sauce for their pasta dinner.

Faith glanced at Sandra, the same thought running through their minds – _a little long for candy shopping_. As Sandra came over to help Faith with the salads, Buffy entered the kitchen, "Hey, where's Dawn? Or Trey for that matter? They've been gone for almost three hours."

"We're not sure," Sandra replied, the two brunettes watching the blonde closely.

Faith could see a slight change in her demeanor- she was getting nervous. Before she could speak, the door to the front of house slammed open, and Trey yelled "Help!" from the hallway. Literally dropping everything, Faith, Sandra, Andrew and Buffy exited the kitchen in a rush, meeting Xander- who was setting the tables- in the main hall before proceeding into the entrance hallway. Tracy looked shaken, and had a bruise along her neck that disappeared diagonally down under her shirt. Faith stared at it- _that's from a seatbelt._

"What's wrong?" Buffy asked, placing her hands on the shaken woman.

"My father, he…h-h-he followed us from t-the mall. He _chased _us down the highway and crashed into us on the exit ramp. Dawn… she..s-she lost control of the car and we went off into the middle of the intersection at the bottom and we got hit from both sides. I-I was okay, but Dawn was unconscious, and t-they took her in an ambulance. I couldn't find my father, but I got a taxi ride back here, and he…I saw him following me home. He'll be here any minute!" Tracy stammered her way through the story, before jumping when a car door slammed outside the door.

Silently, Buffy ushered everyone into the living room, placing Tracy between Sandra and Faith. Xander remained standing, arms crossed, and Andrew hung back behind the couch, leaning on it with his hands. Faith knew all that Buffy wanted to know right now was if Dawn was okay, but a more pressing and possibly more dangerous problem was about to raise it's ugly head. At the sound of a loud knock on the door, Tracy jumped, and Sandra put a hand gently on her back and rubbed it softly. Buffy looked out to the group quickly before she walked over to the door and opened it just enough for her small frame to fill it.

"Can I help you?" Buffy asked kindly.

"My daughter is in there! I demand to be let in!" A man who looked to be about 50, with short, red hair, streaked gray on the sides and a thick, gray beard, insisted.

He was about as tall as Xander and in decent shape, and he was attempting to use it to his every advantage. This man however, did not know that the small woman standing in front of him was much stronger than he, so when he attempted to push the door open, he stumbled backwards a few steps when it didn't budge. Faith could see Buffy's hand holding the door, and she could see how upset she was as her fingers paled, the blood draining from them because her grip was so tight.

"Sir, that is no way to properly attempt to enter _anyone's_ house- I don't care who you are. You could be the Pope, and I wouldn't let you in without you properly asking," Buffy replied coolly, her grip on the door loosening slightly after hearing a quiet _crack_ emitted from it.

The man stood outside, his face reddening in anger, and Faith could see him taking deep breaths to calm himself so that he wouldn't yell.

"Could I please come inside, I would like to _discuss_ something with you," the man whispered, rage barely controlled behind his words.

Faith saw Buffy smile sweetly, "But of course," Buffy swung the door open, swinging her arm towards the living room.

Faith knew that type of response- it was the perfect way to allow a human in, but not good enough for a vampire- and one could never be _too_ careful. Faith watched the man shuffle past Buffy and move into the living room; his eyes alight with fury upon seeing Tracy sitting on the couch. Before he could even utter a word, Faith stood and shifted to block his view of her, demanding his attention.

"Something bothering you, _sir_?" the last word seethed out of her mouth.

"That's.. that's… _you_!" the man whipped around to face Buffy, who brushed past Xander and came over to stand near Sandra.

"I have a name sir, and I would like to know yours as you are asking to speak with me, and I have absolutely no idea who you are," Buffy crossed her arms and kept a sort of innocent look upon her face.

"Max Kincore. I'm here, because my daughter ran away from home, and she needs medical help. You, all of you, are infringing upon a father's legal right," Max glared around at the group, his vision of Tracy still blocked.

"Well, Max," Buffy started, "Who is your daughter?"

"Oh for Christ's sake! She's sitting right there! What do you take me for, an idiot?"

"It's crossed my mind," Faith murmured, the cold look in her eye just begging him to challenge her.

Max blinked, surprised at both the comment and the look he was being given before refocusing on Buffy, "What right…"

"By what right does she need medical attention?" Buffy cut him off, her tone losing all the mock-innocence it had before.

"She thinks that the monsters from the movies exist! It's ludicrous! She even went to some school where they _teach_ it! If that isn't an example of someone who needs mental help, then I don't know what is!" Max threw his hands up, letting out an angry huff.

"Willow," Buffy called out, not turning her head, keeping her gaze on Max. The group as a whole jumped, realizing that both Willow and Kennedy had been standing in the other hallway entrance behind the couch, listening silently, "Is it not a law that, by the age of 18, you are a full adult, and the decision for any type of psychological or institutional help for mental problems of any sort are to be made by the individual- barring the possibility of that individual being a threat to others?"

Willow coughed, clearing her throat, "Why yes, it is. I am surprised that you would have _ever_ asked that," The redhead locked her eyes on Max, and Faith- who had turned to look over at her, saw something in the witch's eyes that spoke of her having been through this type of ordeal before. Turning to look back up at Max, Faith saw his eyes hardening.

"You cannot keep my daughter from me, she needs help!" Max's hands balled into fists, his body shaking slightly.

"Let's see. She's 20 years old; let me ask her," Buffy turned to Tracy, "Trey? Do you want to go home with your father?"

Tracy shook her head quickly, "No!"

"Why you…" Max moved forward, but Faith held up her hand, pushing it against his chest, keeping him from getting any closer, "Who do you…" Max tried to shift around, but Faith held him fast.

As he lifted a hand to push her away, Buffy stepped in, grabbed his wrist, twisted it down and behind his back, her other hand clamping tightly onto his shoulder. Spinning him, Buffy shoved him towards the door, which Xander held open for her. Shoving him out, Buffy re-crossed her arms again. Faith, Willow and Xander all crowded the doorway behind her.

"Now, Max, you go on home, and leave Tracy be. She wants nothing to do with you, and frankly, I can see why. So, as of right now, if I _ever_ hear of you chasing her, following her or bothering her in _any_ way, I will call the police. The intersection where the accident earlier occurred has traffic cameras, and frankly, your ass is about to get screwed by me anyway, as you not only hit my sister _on purpose_, but you pushed her car into the middle of traffic, and we'll have evidence. So, if you don't want any further entanglements aside from this evening's accident, I suggest you leave. Right now."

Max's face drained of it's color as Buffy spoke. When she was finished, he silently turned and walked to his car, his posture slumped in defeat. Buffy didn't shut the door until he had gone out of sight down the driveway. Turning around, Buffy's eyes swept over to Tracy's.

"We'll talk more later, but right now, _tell me_ which hospital they brought Dawn to."

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Buffy was pacing back and forth; fifteen feet by five feet of the tiled waiting room had been claimed her territory- and no one dared enter it. Xander had caught Faith's gaze and began to gather the troupe that was spread out throughout the waiting room, telling them all to come with him to help in getting food and other various things. No one questioned him. This was Faith's moment to be there for Buffy in a way that none of her friends could, and Xander didn't want any prying eyes or eavesdropping ears to be privy to it.

Faith watched Xander's retreating back as he ushered the last few young slayers out of the room before turning to look over at Buffy. The blonde had stopped pacing, but was now fidgeting, obviously flustered and upset. Faith walked over to her and stood in front of her.

"B, Dawn will be okay. She's your sister and a tough woman. Both are proof enough of her ability to pull through," Faith started, capturing the older slayer's attention.

Buffy opened her mouth to speak, and Faith could see her attempting not to freak out. Closing her mouth abruptly, Buffy turned and paced away from Faith, who was at a loss for how to talk to this woman in the current situation. Watching Buffy pace her way back, Faith could see the emotions vying for dominance on the blonde's face, and just as she reached Faith, the dark slayer saw her face begin to crumple. Faith acted quickly.

Grabbing her by the arms, Faith pulled Buffy to her and kissed her. It wasn't hard, but it was forceful, demanding her attention – as if she didn't already have it by now. It was open-mouthed, soft, and without tongue. After a moment, Faith broke the kiss, only to have Buffy grip her, wrapping her arms around her, pulling her in for more.

This kiss was open, wanting, and full of tongue. Buffy's tongue pushed into Faith's mouth, swirling around her own, eliciting sparks of heat throughout her entire body. _God this feels so damn good._ One kiss melded into another and Faith found her hands reacting, one tangling in the hair at the back of Buffy's head and the other pressing between her shoulder blades, holding the blonde to her.

It was all over far too soon, and Faith leaned her forehead against Buffy's, trying to catch her breath. The thought, _damn that was hot,_ gave words to the liquid fire burning its way throughout her body. Faith knew that what she had just done was more comfort than anything else, but if the calmer look on Buffy's face said anything, it was that Faith had succeeded in her goal.

"I just…I don't understand what is taking the doctor so long to tell me what's going on," Buffy murmured as she pulled her head away from Faith's.

"Well, I'm sure it won't be much longer," Faith replied gently, stroking the shorter woman's jaw.

Buffy smiled softly up at Faith before her gazed ticked over her shoulder. Faith turned and saw the rest of the Scoobies standing in the room, candy, chips, soda, flowers and stuffed animals in all of their arms.

"We kinda went overboard," Rona stated, her eyes glancing around at all of the things they had bought.

"You guys seem to do that a lot at hospitals," Buffy replied before turning around when someone cleared their throat behind her.

"Hello, Ms. Summers?" the male doctor was short with a bushy brown beard and a pair of glasses perched on the edge of his nose.

"Yes?" Buffy replied, wrapping her arms around herself. Faith moved closer, subtly invading Buffy's personal space, but not touching her.

"I'm Doctor Hedig. You sister, Dawn is just fine. She suffered a concussion, and woke up about half an hour ago. She has a sprained wrist, and her left ankle was severely bruised, most of the tendons were over-extended in the crash. Otherwise, barring various bruises and cuts and scrapes, she is fine. You can go in and see her now, she's in room 121. If you have any further questions at any time, please, feel free to talk to me," the doctor smiled gently and motioned for Buffy to follow him.

Buffy followed him closely, Faith walking beside her, with the rest of the group trailing behind. When Faith entered the room after Buffy, she saw Dawn sitting up on the bed, looking a little beat up but alert.

"Buffy, hey, did Trey tell you what happened?" Dawn asked quickly.

"Yeah, she did, but that's not important right now. I want to make sure that you're okay," Buffy replied, sitting on the edge of the bed and picking up her sister's hand.

Faith glanced over her shoulder and saw the rest of the Scoobies crammed just outside the doorway, Xander and Willow the only two who stood inside the room. Turning back to smile at Dawn, Faith flicked her gaze to Doctor Hedig when he started to speak.

"Now, we would like to keep her overnight, just for observation, but you can come over in the morning and bring her home," The doctor smiled.

"All right," Buffy replied, nodding, "Is there anything else we need to know, or is she all set for now?"

"I would actually like to talk with you. In private, if you don't mind," the doctor glanced around at the large group before his eyes landed back on Buffy.

Buffy nodded mutely, and stood. Looking back at Dawn, Buffy smiled, "I'll be back soon hon, don't let Faith eat your Jell-o."

"As if she'd ever have a chance," Dawn replied confidently, before she glanced up at Faith, who was grinning down at her.

"Yeah, we'll see," Faith ruffled Dawn's hair gently before turning back to the door, "Hey guys, you can come in, I'm sure Dawn wants to see you all."

Dawn's face brightened at seeing everyone come in, and Faith was glad that she was in such good spirits. _God knows someone needs to be after the ordeal everyone has gone through this evening._


	18. VDay

Author's Note: Books mentioned in this chapter are:

No Exit and Three Other Plays by Jean-Paul Sarte  
Inferno (Hell) by Dante Alighieri

* * *

"One always dies too soon- or too late. And yet one's whole life is complete at that moment, with a line drawn neatly under it, ready for the summing up. You are- your life, and nothing else." - _No Exit  
_

* * *

Faith was sipping a cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee as she sat in the passenger seat of the SUV, Dawn happily munching on a chocolate frosted donut in the seat behind her, with Buffy weaving her way through the beginnings of morning rush hour traffic. Faith glanced over at Buffy before she pulled a jelly donut out of one of the boxes of donuts that they had bought. Holding it close to Buffy's face, Faith grinned upon seeing the blonde's gaze tick from the road to the donut.

"Take a bite, I know you want it," Faith ordered, smirking when Buffy shot her a look before doing as she was told.

It had become known to her back in Sunnydale that the almost everyone in the Scooby Gang were great fans of the jelly donut. Apparently it was all because of Giles, and his love of the jelly donut caused the group to impress it upon anyone who joined up with them. This morning, Faith had one and a half dozen jelly donuts, and another one and a half dozen various donuts. The group scoffed at her ability to withstand the jelly temptation, and Faith secretly laughed at how big a deal everyone made it out to be. She retained her reasoning to be that when she was younger, she used to read _Calvin and Hobbes_, and at one point in the comic strip, Calvin explained to his father that a jelly donut was a lot like eating a squishy bug with its guts popping out. In all honesty, Faith liked the jelly donut, but it was far too much fun to ruffle Xander, Willow and - especially- Buffy's feathers about it every time they bought donuts.

The previous night had been a long one, with Faith staying at the hospital with Buffy long after everyone else had gone home, only able to drag her back to the car when Dawn's insistence of Buffy leaving became more stern than the nurses informing her of the end of visiting hours.

"Question," Dawn mumbled as she chewed a bit of her donut, "Why'd the doctor talk to you privately? I mean, he said nothing to me that I deemed private talk."

"Mmm? Oh yeah," Buffy glanced up into the rearview mirror, looking back at Dawn, remembering back to Dr. Hedig asking to speak to her in private, "Well, you are a legal adult, but I guess since you live with me and are a student, he figured I was more on top of things than you were, legally speaking."

"Ha, now that's funny," Dawn laughed.

"Shut up," Buffy retorted, glaring over at Faith, who had joined in with Dawn in laughing, "Look, do you want me to tell you, or not?"

_Ah, the threat to withhold information_, Faith thought, _quite possibly the best way to get Dawn's attention._

"Yeah, yeah," Dawn replied, her face becoming serious again.

"He just wanted to tell me that, if I went to court, that he would aid in testifying to your injuries that they were caused by the accident that you were in, mostly using evidence of your ankle as proof of the double hit in the middle of the intersection. It's no biggie. he just didn't want to tell me in front of the others, as I am your only blood relative nearby and I own the house that you live in" Buffy informed her sister, shrugging as she spoke.

"That's it? Man, I thought it was gonna be something _bad_," Dawn drawled, raising her eyebrows in surprise, "I mean, he was all serious and somber."

"Yeah, totally got the 'badness' vibe too, B," Faith chimed in.

"Well, technically, the situation that landed Dawn in the hospital in the first place is a good reason to be serious, so I guess he wasn't too wrong in acting the way he did," Buffy rationalized, flicking the signal on as she exited the highway.

"Yeah, but still…" Dawn continued, and Faith suddenly knew that the younger Summers woman was just trying to push her sister's buttons- and succeeding far too easily.

"Enough! Are you seriously going to blame me for not telling you something horrible?" Buffy silenced her sister, the exasperation evident in her voice.

Dawn's face broke out into a grin, "Wow, morning wake-up calls make you grumpy, don't they?"

Buffy was about to shoot a comment back, but after glancing into the rearview mirror, she saw the look in Dawn's eyes that Faith knew was there just from the sound of her voice. Smiling, Buffy's sighed as she took a right at a light they had come to.

"Only if they include alarm clocks," Buffy mumbled, her eyes flicking quickly to Faith, who grinned back, _yes, something which is quickly becoming used far less frequently_.

Dawn groaned, "I _don't _want to hear about it! It's bad enough that I need to leave my room to use the bathroom, and thus hear the particularly loud sounds that actually make it through Will and Ken's walls on my way to it- I don't have to hear about how you get woken up by Faith."

Faith almost laughed at the blush that covered Buffy's cheeks, "I didn't say…"

"It's the implication in what you said- and that's more than enough. Plus you're all Obvious Insinuation Girl by looking over at her anyway," Dawn shot back, cutting off any attempts to defend herself that Buffy might've made.

Faith finally laughed at this, and ignored the daggers that the blonde was shooting her way as they pulled into the driveway.

"Oh come off it B, right now you are about to have to deal with something far more awful than your sister calling you on a simple truth," Faith sighed, trying to lighten up the currently sulking slayer.

"Oh? And what is that?" Buffy asked, glancing back at Dawn as she put the SUV in park in the garage.

"You are about to get mauled by sugar fiends," Faith stated matter-of-factly as she climbed out of the vehicle, helping Dawn get out and onto her crutches while Buffy carried the three boxes of donuts towards the door that led into the house.

Buffy smiled before looking down at the boxes, a look of apprehension flashing across her features as she glanced up at the door and then over to Faith and Dawn.

"You go in first," Buffy urged- her eyes on Faith.

Faith chuckled as she pressed the button beside the house door to shut the garage door, "Wimp."

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"So," Faith began after Buffy had finally extricated herself from the slayer horde in the dining room currently eating all of the donuts, "You got any type of schedule today, or tonight?"

Buffy looked over at her, and after taking in the brunette, arched an eyebrow slightly in amusement.

"What?" Faith asked, uncertain what had earned her the look the blonde was leveling at her. It might have been the leg hooked over the arm of the loveseat, or the fact that she had a book resting on her abdomen, her finger holding her place, or even the fact that she had propped herself up with pillows- proving that she was planning on being there for quite some time.

"Nothing, I've just… never seen you with a book before," Buffy shrugged, smiling as she plopped down next to Faith before continuing, "Comics, yeah, but not books."

Faith sat silently, her emotions leaning more towards feeling insulted than proud of surprising Buffy, "I read," She commented, her voice sounding slightly more put out than she had intended, "I needed something to kill the time in prison besides staying in shape, and staying alive. Plus traveling the world forced me into learning more about distinct cultures, languages and the demons living there."

Buffy nodded, her expression looking apologetic, "I didn't mean to say that you _couldn't_ read…"

Faith waved Buffy silent, "Don't worry about it," An odd silence came between the pair as they sat there before Faith cleared her throat, "So, you didn't answer my question."

"What? Oh, yeah, no, no schedule today. I mean, besides patrol, I'm planning on it being a lazy Valentine's. Considering past experiences, I try to stay put on certain important dates," Buffy shrugged.

"Such as your birthday?" Faith asked, grinning.

Buffy nodded, before shaking her head at the memories, "Yeah, definitely that one," The pair again fell silent, but this time it was far more comfortable. When Buffy spoke again, Faith, who had been resting her eyes across the room, jerked slightly at the question, "Why did you ask?" before looking at her.

"About what?" _Wow, I completely lost that train of thought…_

"About my day," Buffy replied, as if Faith should have been able to follow her thought process, _yeah, 'cause your thoughts "always" follow a common thread…_

"Ah yeah, well, I have plans," Faith replied, breaking her gaze as she did so, remaining vague.

Buffy allowed a smile to flash across her face, "Really?"

Faith looked over, _talk about short-term memory issues,_ "Yeah, but not 'till later. Why not have Ken spend the night in with Red, and I'll patrol with you? I talked to her about it, and she seemed kinda relieved, but wanted to check with you first."

"Yeah, sure, sounds fine with me. I know she has serious plans with Willow that probably have nothing to do with being quiet," Buffy nodded, smiling knowingly.

"Oh yeah…" Faith exhaled, gaining a curious look from Buffy, "Ah, she just talked to me about it a few days ago," she explained quickly.

Buffy smiled back, a hint of a blush creeping up on her face, _naughty thoughts B?_ As the pair just looked at each other, Willow came in, _oh the impeccable timing._

"Hey Buffy? Morning Faith," Willow greeted the rogue slayer before refocusing on Buffy, "I've got those papers you asked about, you can read them over and then get back to me, and then we can talk to Xander if you want," Willow finished as she handed Buffy a manila folder with a small hunk of papers in it, a pen hooked on the edge of the folder.

Faith nodded at Willow in greeting, her eyes following the transferal of the folder from one woman to the other and watched Willow leave the room before looking back over at Buffy.

"What's that?" Faith asked, nodding towards the folder in Buffy's hands, her eyes flicking from the blonde's to the folder and back.

"Oh, just some landscaping, construction and other assorted building conditions forms," Buffy explained turning sideways on the loveseat so that her back was against the opposite armrest, her legs sliding over the thigh that Faith didn't have up over an armrest as she got comfortable before flipping open the folder, pulling open the pen as she did so.

"For what?" Faith continued, glancing down with a sardonic look at the feet and legs now on top of her own slightly outstretched body.

Buffy looked up from whatever she was reading, "Oh, uh, we've been thinking about extending the house on the right side," Buffy replied.

"We've?" The tone in Faith's voice had a hint of hurt in it, and Faith could tell that Buffy picked up on it, _not leaving me outta the loop again are you?_ Faith thought.

Buffy's face became serious, "I'm sorry, it was just an idea Willow, Xander and I had thrown up in the air before you even came here, and then both you and Trey came here, which has completely screwed us out of extra beds in case we need to give specific aid to Slayers. I don't send many Slayers to Vi and Rona's mansion because I prefer to keep an actual eye on them. Not to knock Vi or Rona, they're both amazing, but…"

"You'd feel better if you could look after any problem Slayers, without displacing any of the others?" Faith finished, gaining a nod from Buffy.

"So as the months have gone on, we actually started planning it out, and we figured we could add in a study for myself down here, as well as at least four bedrooms that can be turned into doubles if need be, and up on the third floor there will be a few extra rooms- we haven't fully planned that out yet. We also wanted to expand Willow's study into a sort of double room, where we would allow for a greater amount of space for researching in a large group, instead of having everyone spread out in the house and then convene together. If this all works out, we'll be able to keep all information and research in the same room, allowing for a much smoother and far more collaborative research system," Buffy explained.

"Cool," Faith nodded, impressed, then, a teasing idea came into her head, "So, do I get an extra bedroom?"

Buffy looked over at her in surprise, _just keeping you on your toes B,_ Faith thought as the blonde relaxed after noticing that Faith was kidding.

"Well, if you would like something specific, we could set up a room on the third floor for gaming. You know, move the pool table up there; set up a dart board or air hockey, maybe make a room where everyone could just hang. I was also thinking of adding a library specifically for regular reading upstairs on the third floor as well, instead of extra main bedrooms. I don't want every bookshelf in this place to have a demonology or vampire lore anthology crammed into it due to lack of room anywhere else. The idea is to get all of the reading material not related to vampire slaying out of the two studies and put upstairs into this new library, as well as to bring all of the extraneous books that _are_ related to world save-age and things that go bump in the night that are in all of the bedrooms upstairs down into the main research room- again to keep things together. Hopefully, this bookcase in here can then get rid of its entire shelf dedicated to anything that isn't a demon or vampire that we need to know about, and be filled up with regular books," Buffy continued.

"Trying to create a sort of normalcy everywhere but in the HQ?" Faith asked, smirking slightly.

"HQ?" Buffy asked back.

"Headquarters. You're basically making that expanded research room _the_ hotspot for, well, research," Faith explained.

"Ah, well, there's that, yes, but also, I've never enjoyed trying to steer anyone who doesn't know the true nature of this mansion and its inhabitants away from that bookcase," Buffy nodded to the bookcase in question to Faith's left, "It doesn't happen often, usually an occasional police officer or detective, and once the governor's aide. When it does though, they're there due to me attempting to keep their eyes away from everything really happening here, so I don't like those books so easily giving everything away, or at least alerting them."

"I thought the cops did know what you were up to," Faith furrowed her brows in confusion, "You gave endorsements to the Chief of Police and the Governor, I know that much."

"The Chief, yes. The regular police do not know what's going on here, but the Chief does. It was important for me to have him aware of what is really going on in this world, so that I wouldn't be constantly crossing paths and dealing with red tape and arrests. The annual endorsements- which are perfectly legal I might add- are my way of telling the Chief, 'you stay off my back, and I keep the number of bodies that are drained of blood via puncture wounds in their necks far lower than it has ever been before I moved here.'"

"Nice," Faith nodded, "Talk about reading between the lines."

Buffy laughed, "Yeah, well, the less written, the better."

Faith nodded again in agreement before watching Buffy go back to reading the papers. Lifting her book back up, Faith opened it and continued reading.

It was some time before either spoke again, and when Buffy did speak, Faith finally realized that she had been too engrossed in the book to notice that the house had fallen silent- the younger slayers were off to their schools and everyone had either headed out to work or hidden themselves somewhere in the mansion.

"What are you reading?" The question jolted Faith out of her focus and she looked over at Buffy, who had seemingly gotten through most of the stack of papers.

"'No Exit' by Sarte. It's a one-act play," Faith replied, then, continued, "I've read it more times than I can count. I found it in the library at prison, and was captivated from page one."

"What's it about?" Buffy inquired, putting down the folder in her lap, giving Faith her full attention.

"Hell," Faith shrugged, then, smirking at Buffy's expression, "Seriously. This play makes Dante's Inferno look like a childish fantasy."

"What makes you say that? I thought Inferno was about the types of Hell," Buffy's eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"Well, Inferno is about the types of Hell for people and their crimes, with each circle of Hell getting progressively worse as the punishments are doled out to people who are increasingly immoral and evil. 'No Exit' is about three people's personal Hell, which is a lot like living, according to Sarte," Faith explained, "The fact that it is short is just an added bonus in making it a fulfilling quick read."

Buffy smiled, shaking her head, "Quite the attention span you got there."

"I was saying that for your benefit, not mine," Faith shot back, grinning when Buffy leaned forward and swatted her in the arm.

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"I'm suddenly wishing I had taken Vi up on letting her and Rona patrol tonight," Buffy murmured as the pair made their way through one of the larger cemeteries.

"Oh come on, you know you can't stand _not_ going out at least once a week to slay something, and if you didn't go out tonight, it would've been even longer than a week before your rotation came up again," Faith cajoled.

"Well, yeah, you have a point," Buffy nodded before coming to a stop.

Faith stopped only one step further, her Slayer sense picking up on something nearby. Looking over her shoulder at Buffy, she could tell that the shorter woman was feeling the same thing. The pair locked eyes for a moment, and then both separated, going in opposite arcs towards where their senses were telling them to go. As she made her way around a rather large angel, Faith glanced past the wings of the gravestone, and saw a small group of vampires gathering around a fresh grave. Moving forward silently, Faith snuck up behind one vamp and plunged her stake through his back and into his heart. The scream of his dusting caused the group of vampires to turn suddenly, leaving the newly risen vamp to get out on his own.

Faith smirked when Buffy took advantage of her ability to distract the group and copied Faith's maneuver by staking another vampire in front of her. _Down from five to three, plus one ugly duckling half in the grave._ Taking on the closest vampire, Faith hit him under the chin with a high kick and then pivoted around to slam a fist into his face. Grabbing him by his long hair, Faith yanked the vampire down and kneed him in the face before shoving him backwards and staking him. The sound of his dusting was echoed by Buffy's stake finding home on the vampire she had been fighting. Turning, Faith saw the dirt covered vampire snarling before her, the feed upon him stronger than any of the others. The sound of a fight off to her right let Faith know that Buffy was dealing with the third vampire, and Faith grinned, a glint in her eye as she set herself, waiting for the new vampire to rush her.

He didn't let her down. Snarling even more, he ran right at her and ducked her punch to land his own in her stomach. Grunting, Faith pulled back and eyed the vamp, who was now grinning.

"You think that was an accomplishment? You've got a lot to learn about this business. Unfortunately for you, you'll never get the chance," Faith taunted, faking a punch with her right hand, only to slam an uppercut with her left into the vamp's face.

A roundhouse kick to the vampire caused him to stumble, and an elbow to the side of his head made his footing unsteady, allowing Faith to finish him off quickly. Dusting off her hands, Faith turned to see Buffy leaning against a headstone, waiting for her.

"Enjoying the view?" Faith asked, giving Buffy a knowing look.

"There's that," Buffy agreed, the edges of her mouth twitching, "But it took you long enough."

"Eh, beginner's luck," Faith shrugged, "I'm not always a speed slayer."

"You let a newbie land a punch," Buffy ribbed as Faith approached her.

"B, you're the one who has a worse record with getting injured by them," Faith shot back sarcastically as they began walking towards the back of the cemetery, where one of the several local forests pushed up against the edges of it- it's proximity to the cemetery a partial reason behind why it was infested with something demonic most of the week.

After Buffy's quiet laugh faded, the pair fell silent, moving stealthily through the forest, the eyes and ears tuned into anything the forest produced. It was a general rule to bring all of the younger slayers into this particular forest once a week, as it never failed to provide perfect training against nests of vampires, bands of demons, or anything else the Hellmouth decided to spew out. In the heart of the large forest there was a circular clearing where the trees, bushes and undergrowth stopped; giving the Scooby Gang all of the physical proof they needed to know that the clearing was the residence of the currently active Hellmouth in Cleveland.

It had been almost thirty minutes since Buffy and Faith entered the forest, and Faith was getting an itch. Nothing was rearing its horned head, and she needed to do some damage. The vampires had merely whetted her appetite, and Faith was starting to wonder if she'd be able to control herself within Buffy's presence that night if she didn't get in a real good slay. Faith had again turned to slaying as her form of medicine in curing the hornies- a big slay calmed her far better than just a few random dustings. _If something doesn't happen soon, I'm gonna be jumping her bones within hours,_ Faith thought, glancing sideways over at Buffy, who had turned her head to look out into the trees to her left. Turning to look away, Faith scanned ahead of them, only to stop suddenly when Buffy grabbed her hand, pulling her back to her.

Buffy apparently hadn't looked when she pulled, and Faith brushed up against the shorter slayer, sending jolts of heat throughout her body at the contact. Buffy turned to look at her, the desire in her eyes was quelled for the moment by a look of concentration.

"Listen," Buffy whispered, jerking her head off to her left.

Faith stood still, breathing silently through her mouth, all systems on alert for whatever Buffy wanted her to hear. At first, she heard nothing. Then, _that sounds like chanting- and in these woods, that isn't generally a good thing._ Looking down into Buffy's eyes, Faith nodded, silently telling her that she did hear. The two Slayers moved towards the sounds, staying close to each other this time around to check out what was going on before attacking. Faith hadn't noticed just how close to the Hellmouth area they had been, and found herself looking out from the edges of the brush into the clearing where four Kartuk demons were chanting inside a powder circle with candles lit up around them. It took only one look between the pair of women for a decision to be made, _crashers it is._ Crouching down, Faith pulled her knife from its ankle holster and stood back up. Glancing over at Buffy, Faith saw that she had had the same idea, her own knife in her hand. Nodding once, they moved in quickly.

Taking the chanters by surprise, Buffy had already broken one of four demons' necks before the group roared as a whole and attacked. _Shit_, Faith thought, as they all decided to converge on Buffy at once, instead of attacking one at a time, _not like the stupid vamps I see_. Before Faith could move toward the group, Buffy had knocked one away and slightly toward Faith before being hit to the ground, where a kick to her midsection caused her to let out a loud gasp. Faith wanted nothing more than to ignore the current demon in front of her and race over to help Buffy but she knew that in order to go from point A to point C, she had to deal with point B first. Closing a hand into a fist, Faith used the hand with the knife in it to keep the demon at bay before landing a solid blow to his jaw. She had just barely grazed her fist against his chin horns, and the skin on her knuckles split from the contact. Cursing, Faith moved away, parrying a kick the demon aimed at her midsection and using the weight from his forward movement to pull him toward the spot she had previously stood in as she spun around him and plunged the knife through the back of his neck.

Ignoring the loud gurgling sounds of his painful death, Faith moved toward the scuffle between Buffy and the other two Kartuk demons. Buffy had managed to get one in a choke hold, but was losing her grip due to the other demon repeatedly barreling into her side. Running over, Faith spun and kicked the free demon, her foot connecting with his shoulder, causing him to growl as he stumbled away in an attempt to stay upright. Moving into a ready stance, Faith watched him circle her, saliva dripping its way down his chin horns, his bright red eyes focused only on her. Faith waited, _your move you ugly imp._ The demon charged her, and Faith decided that this must be their main mode of attack, as their short stature and solid build made it very appealing to knock over or off-balance an adversary. Crouching down, Faith bent her arms at the elbows and grabbed hold of the brutish demon, vaulting him over her and onto his back behind her. Swiveling around, Faith dropped her body, slamming all her weight into the elbow currently making contact with the demon's nose. Howling in pain, the demon scrambled around, shoving Faith away as he moved into a crouch. Faith barely registered the loud sound of a neck cracking off to her right, and instead kept her attention on the demon snarling at her, an almost black colored blood pouring down his face and dripping off his horns.

It was a quick movement, but Faith noticed, as the demon seemed to shift his feet before springing up and twisting his body, his cloven feet slamming hard into Faith's sternum. Grunting, Faith stumbled back, only to feel the intense pain of the demon bang the side of his head into her right thigh, the horns around his ears slicing easily through the jeans and flexed flesh beneath it. Letting out a painful yell, Faith didn't even wait for the demon to pull away and instead plunged her knife down into its neck. The demon shrieked and grunted, twisting around, it's ear horns ripping themselves from Faith's leg as he collapsed by her feet, jerking around as he died. Faith exhaled loudly when his horns came out, and her leg buckled beneath her, causing her to fall to one knee. Taking deep, calming breaths, Faith pulled the knife from the demon and sheathed it before feeling a pair of hands grip her arms from behind, one of them pulling Faith's right arm up. Faith turned and saw Buffy crouch next to her, pulling her right arm around her neck.

"C'mon, let's get you home," Buffy said quietly before helping Faith to her feet.

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Faith lay in bed, a white bandage wrapped around her thigh. As much as it had hurt, the Kartuk demon hadn't actually sunk his horns in too far, and Faith was pretty sure she'd be able to use the leg fully by the morning. She had showered and was currently sitting in a muscle shirt and a pair of panties, waiting for Buffy to come upstairs with dinner. She had planned something very simple and completely her style for Valentine's, but was currently furious for not being able to bring it to Buffy. Hearing Buffy push on of the doors open, Faith looked up at the four bags of Chinese food in the blonde's hands. Buffy grinned,

"This was a nice idea, Faith," Buffy stated, placing the food next to the brunette, was leaning over to her nightstand, "What are you looking for?"

"Hold on," Faith replied quickly, pulling out a plastic grocery bag, "Okay, for Valentine's Day, I both rented and borrowed from downstairs, four movies for a little vidfest."

Faith felt a huge surge of relief when Buffy's eyes lit up, her fear of disappointing the other Chosen One dissipating instantly, "Really? Oh my God, simplicity on an overly gaudy holiday! You're the best."

Faith smiled appreciatively, "Okay, well, the four movies are, and I state beforehand that they are clichéd, but I doubt you care," Faith informed her, gaining a shake of Buffy's head- indicating that she did not, "We have…" Faith rummaged into the bag, pulling out the four DVDs and proceeded to read the titles, "We have, Pretty Woman, Thelma & Louise, Imagine Me & You, and When Harry Met Sally…. So, it's your pick for which will be first."

Buffy kneeled on the bed and took the DVDs when Faith handed them to her. She brought them over to the TV and turned it on. Opening the case to When Harry Met Sally…, Buffy put the DVD into the player and moved to the door, flicking off the main light- leaving only Faith's nightstand light on- and shut the door before walking back to the bed, a remote in her hand. Sitting down on the bed, Buffy propped her pillows next to Faith and sat down next to her, pulling out a carton from the bag of Chinese food. Pressing "play" the pair dug into their post-slayage meal as the opening scene started.

It wasn't until halfway through Pretty Woman later on, when both women were dozing off that Buffy leaned over to Faith and kissed her gently on the cheek. Looking down at the blonde slayer, Faith smiled when Buffy whispered sleepily, "Thanks for an amazing Valentine's Day."

"Aside from getting hurt?" Faith asked back quietly, kissing the top of the drowsy slayer's head.

A quiet chuckle made it's way out of Buffy's mouth, "Yeah, aside from that."

Faith waited until she was sure that Buffy was asleep before she turned off the television and put all of their trash into the plastic bags, dropping them quietly on the floor before turning out her light and falling asleep as well.

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Faith woke slowly, taking in the muffled sounds of the waking world. The sun was making its grand entrance slowly through the deck doors- flecks of pink brightening the warm orange hues scattering the horizon over the trees. She was on her side with Buffy's back flush against her chest; her arm draped over a jutting hip of the blonde's, her fingers curled up against the smaller woman's panty line. Nuzzling Buffy's neck, Faith inhaled the other woman's scent. Faith smiled when she felt Buffy shift in front of her, a quiet murmur of contentment being exhaled from the slumbering woman's mouth. Flattening out her free hand, Faith caressed the smooth skin of Buffy's lower abdomen and the ridge created from the elastic on her panties. Moving her thumb back and forth gently, Faith smiled into Buffy's hair when the other woman hummed a second time, reacting to the subtle ministrations.

"Mmmm, you woke me up," Buffy murmured quietly, her eyes still closed.

"Kinda the point," Faith replied softly, her lips perilously close to Buffy's ear.

Flicking her tongue out, Faith trailed it gently along the curved edge of Buffy's ear, while her hand softly stroked a path up along the other woman's stomach. Receiving a sigh, Faith lowered her head to Buffy's neck, starting a slow trail of kisses where ever her mouth could reach. As her hand moved further north along the blonde's warm skin, Faith could feel the flimsy undershirt that Buffy wore to bed riding up as well. Faith knew she was just teasingly stoking the fires, and without a thought, pushed the envelope just a bit further- simultaneously cupping one of Buffy's breasts while gently biting the heated flesh on the other woman's neck.

That got the reaction Faith had been aiming for. Buffy arched her body back into Faith, her voice hitching as Faith soothed the bitten area with the flat of her tongue, her words tumbling out of her mouth in a ragged breath, "God, Faith…that feels…"

Faith smiled against the blonde, letting out a warm breath of air along the now thoroughly tasted skin, "Preview of coming attractions."

Buffy smiled softly as she shifted herself against Faith, "Emphasis on the verb?"

Faith grinned, her thumb flicking over Buffy's hardened nipple, "Oh yeah."

"As much as I'm enjoying this, I really need to use the bathroom," Buffy stated huskily, a hint of embarrassment on her cheeks.

Faith let go of the blonde reluctantly, enjoying watching her get up and enter the bathroom. _God that woman drives my body insane._ Rolling onto her back, Faith laced her fingers together behind her head as she stared up at the ceiling. Flexing her right thigh beneath the sheets, Faith was glad to feel very little pain from the injury from the previous night- _thank God for Slayer healing_. Upon hearing the toilet flush and the subsequent sounds of the faucet, Faith turned her head to watch Buffy open the bathroom door. Flicking off the light, Buffy leaned on the door jam, her eyes darkening as the pupils dilated in the sudden darkness. Faith felt a flush rush through her body at the way she was being visually stripped by Buffy, and couldn't help shifting oh-so slightly- just enough to allow the low slung sheets to accentuate the dips and curves of her lower body a bit better. _All this waiting is about to pay off if B follows through with that look,_ Faith thought, allowing a sly smirk to creep up her face as Buffy started moving towards the bed.

It was miniscule, but then again, Buffy would later tell her that she had brushed it off initially, too. As Buffy was about to climb into bed, she lost her balance, even if only for a second. Stopping her forward movements, Buffy looked at Faith, and grinned sheepishly. Looking as if she was about to say something- and Faith figured it had to do with the small trip- all comedy vanished as Faith saw the blood drain from the blonde's face and her whole body swooned. Moving quickly, Faith jumped up to her knees and caught the collapsing woman. Gently laying her on the bed, Faith checked her pulse before a sudden realization came over her. Running over to the speaker by Buffy's door, Faith found the button labeled simply "W&K" and pressed it. Holding the button down long enough to both wake up anyone sleeping and also make them go over to the speaker, Faith let go, only to have a very groggy and angry Kennedy grumble "What?" through it.

"Get Willow up, those fuckers found some way around our spells. They're doing the second life-suck on B," Faith yelled into the speaker, letting it drop back down.

Hearing a crackle signifying that Kennedy was about to speak back, the sounds of quick movements from the other end of the line gave background noise to Kennedy as she said, "Willow's on her way over, I'll get Sandra up and have her prep a bed downstairs."

Faith didn't reply, she merely moved away from the speaker and back over to the bed, flicking on the lamp on the bedside table as she sat on the edge, her hand moving gently through Buffy's hair as a cold sheen of sweat covered her skin. It felt clammy to the touch and Faith'a anger at the Kartuk began rising up in her, _those assholes are so gonna pay for this. If they thought last night was bad, just wait until I find out where they fucking sleep._ The sound of running footsteps jarred her from her thoughts. Looking up from Buffy's pale face, Faith watched Willow open the doors to the bedroom, the sight of Kennedy slipping into Xander and Sandra's room a flash of movement behind the redhead.

Willow moved quickly across the room, her eyes alert and full of concern, yet the puffiness of recent awakening from slumber still remained. Moving to Buffy's side, Willow silently acknowledged Faith, who had stood up when she had entered, and placed a hand on Buffy's forehead. Closing her eyes, Willow whispered an incantation in Latin before flicking her eyes open and looking up at Faith.

"I've stopped the initial attack of magick. We need to get her into the trauma room to keep her stable." Willow informed her, "Can you carry her down?"

Faith nodded mutely before slipping a hand under the small woman's knees and at the top of her shoulders, angling Buffy's body as she lifted her so that her head rested against Faith's chest. Glancing at Willow as they left the room, Faith noticed that the witch was just as undressed as Faith- except that Willow had a pair of shorts on to covered herself a bit more. A flimsy red undershirt hugged the redhead's frame, giving a colorful accent to the white of Faith's muscle shirt. It would only be later on, when everyone was certain that Buffy would be okay that Faith would remember that she was clad only in her panties and this shirt, but then again, the morning turned into a day full of half clothed woman who were woken from sleep and had to act fast- the notion of decency all but an afterthought.


	19. Jumbled Moments in Time

Sorry about the long wait- busy new job and moving back to college (I swear it gets worse every year). As for the fear created from me putting in the Sartre quote at the beginning of the last chapter- it was merely intended as a reflection on how Buffy and Faith are handling their relationship, as it is all that they make it out to be.

Also, I want to heartily thank every single reviewer, as the last chapter gave me some serious confidence boosting just when I needed it.

Author's Note: The ages of the dozen younger slayers are as follows:

Lynn – 8; Kate – 9; Sammy – 10; Dana & Shane – 11; Gia – 12; Cherie – 13; Jess & Britt – 15; Tonya – 16; Jack & Aggie - 17

* * *

"…All the possibility and promise just weighs on me so heavily/…Sometimes I just can't explain/ All the ways you devastate me/ Always on my mind…"

- "The Tension and the Terror" by Straylight Run

* * *

Smoke curled up slowly in the chilly air. The cigarette was held precariously between the fore and middle fingers of Faith's right hand. The ash hung in a slight curve to the butt of the cigarette- burned down to the end without being moved. Faith hadn't stirred in over thirty minutes. Watching the cigarette burn itself without her assistance gave her scattered brain something to focus on. The gray skies of an early April morning greeted Faith as she sat wrapped up in a thick blanket on Buffy's small deck in a plastic lawn chair. She had been out here for nearly an hour after waking from yet another nightmare of Buffy dying before deciding to light a cigarette- only to not feel any desire to smoke it.

It had been almost a month and a half since Buffy had been magickally attacked by the Kartuk demons, and if anything, life in the mansion had only become more stressed. Within days of the attack and Buffy's subsequent recovery, the Coven that Willow regularly spoke with in Devon had arrived in preparation of the third and final attack that would initiate the apocalypse. The women were given lodging in Vi and Rona's mansion, and visited Willow and the Scoobies daily. In an attempt to ease the tension, Faith had brought in a quick learning T'wanii to aid in cooking lasagna for the entire house the previous night- only to have Giles' unannounced arrival reinforce the severity of the situation.

Faith watched the smoke curl up as the cigarette finally burned itself out of existence, her thoughts shifting from the current circumstances to a time almost four years ago.

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_It was a cool, misty night in Prague. Anything more than fifty yards away was invisible to the eye, and yet Faith crouched on the fire escape in the alley, her eyes and ears as alert as ever, lying in wait. She had been told to meet her informant here at 1 AM. It was 2:30. _Fucker is so late- better have an amazing excuse.

_It was only a few minutes later before a lanky, black haired woman emerged from the mist. She was limping, but her eyes were scanning the alley in search of something._

_"You're late," Faith stated bluntly when the woman was almost directly below her._

_The woman jumped in shock before looking up, and watched as Faith climbed down, "Ran into some trouble."_

_"How vague of you," Faith snorted, "What's the sitch?"_

_"Werewolf uprising.__ I've heard you're sorta impartial to them, and I'll tell you we are as well, but these guys have honed their abilities- they're conscious of their changing and are moving in packs to attack innocents on purpose. There is a small contingency of underground fighters led by another werewolf who are trying to subdue them. We need you to lend a hand," The woman informed her._

_"Sounds straightforward enough," Faith nodded, "Not out to kill, just stop the uprising?" Off of the woman's nod, "I'm assuming I'm gonna hafta hook up with the underground group?" Another nod, "'K, so who's this leader?"_

_"You can find him in the wolf clubs- he frequents them in attempts to try to calmly stop this. Short guy, red hair, kinda monosyllabic."_

_Faith allowed a grin to appeared, "I think I may know him."_

_"Well, in that case, it should make finding him all the easier," the woman replied, a look of slight surprise gracing her features._

_"I hope so," Faith nodded, "Is there anything else I need to know?"_

_"Nothing that I know, I'm just the messenger," the woman replied, shrugging._

_"Ai'ight. Thanks for the info," Faith sighed before shifting her feet as her Slayer sense started prickling, "You might wanna make yourself scarce."_

_The woman looked at Faith for a long moment before comprehension registered. Nodding curtly, the woman turned on her heel and vanished into the wispy mist as Faith turned and jumped back up the fire escape to get herself a better look at her surroundings._

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The day had passed slowly, and Faith found that the cool spring evening had a calming affect on her chaotic mind. Leaning her elbows on the railing, Faith watched the sky shift slowly from dusk to night. The sound of a truck engine starting in the garage two floors down jarred her from staring off into the darkness. _Guess Ken is out patrollin' tonight._

Faith heard the bedroom door shut inside and turned around to see Buffy flicking on the main light. Sliding open the deck door, Faith entered the room, smiling at the blonde- who had looked over in surprise- in greeting. Shutting the door behind her, Faith strode over to the bed and sat down on the edge, her eyes watching the other slayer's every movement. It had become a thing that she did more often since the second Kartuk attack. While neither woman spoke about the silent gazes that swept over every inch of the blonde's body, both found it comforting- when it wasn't causing every part of Faith's body to ache for the other woman at least.

It felt as if the time since the attack had flown by, and yet Faith had the distinct impression that her relationship with Buffy had stalled- if only in light of the countdown to the most current apocalypse attempt. The fear of losing Buffy in an attack that she could neither fully prepare for or physically stop, jarred Faith so strongly that she pulled away from advancing their relationship after Buffy recovered. Retrospectively, this couldn't have been a worse move on her part, and Faith was daily cursing herself for treading on the progress they had made.

Watching Buffy kick her shoes off, Faith thought about the past week, and how Buffy had been tentatively attempting to bridge the gap that the dark slayer had unintentionally forced between them. It was on this thought that Faith's relaxed gaze noticed a flash of metal that glinted in the light on the blonde when she moved. Narrowing her eyes, Faith focused on the button of Buffy's jeans as it flashed again, the unbuckled belt hanging limply on either side of it, framing it teasingly. Conscious of her throat constricting as she swallowed, Faith flicked her eyes up to Buffy's, and found the green eyes watching her intently, _givin__' me a show, B?_

Seeing the crinkle form around Buffy's eyes, Faith allowed a devilish grin to appear on her own features before her eyes caught the movement of Buffy's hands as they moved towards the jeans' button. Staring, transfixed, Faith watched as the copper-toned button was pulled from its counterpart, freeing the jeans of their low-slung hold on the other slayer's hips. Faith felt her mouth dry as emotions and desires that she had unconsciously held at bay for over a month boiled up within her. She could feel chills shooting up and down the length of her body as anticipation set in with the tantalizingly slow sinking of the zipper. The chills settled into her stomach, and Faith forced herself to swallow as she licked her dry lips, watching Buffy start moving towards her, her eyes locked on the pale green panties peeking through the opening in the jeans that shifted ever lower on the older woman's hips as she moved.

Faith barely took note that not one word had been spoken yet as Buffy kneeled down onto the bed on top of her, straddling the brunette's hips. Faith leaned back as Buffy leaned forward, her hands instinctively lifting to hold the blonde's waist. Lying flat on her back with her legs hanging out over the bed, Faith shut her eyes to the sensation of Buffy's body pressed down against hers, the warm puffs of air being blown across the planes of her cheeks causing her to shiver.

"Faith," Buffy whispered gently.

Faith opened her eyes to the darkening green ones inches from her own, a question in her eyes.

"Don't pull away," the request was gentle, and was meant to be taken in more than one way. More importantly, Faith could sense the tangle of emotions behind it. Nodding slowly, Faith acknowledged the request before shutting her eyes as Buffy lowered her lips to her own.

Faith was allowing Buffy to take the reins. She had been a top all her life, but right now, the dark slayer couldn't think of wanting to be anything but beneath the small woman currently lying astride her.

It wasn't a full kiss, and Faith felt a quiver of desire make its way into the bottom of her stomach as Buffy trailed her lower lip over Faith's parted lips. Kissing her lower lips first before moving to the top one, Faith exhaled softly at the enticing foreplay. Losing all sense of resistance, Faith opened her mouth and kissed Buffy back, her tongue aggressively dueling with the blonde's tongue in her mouth. Sliding her hand up to Buffy's head, Faith held the other slayer's body against her as she broke the kiss and shifted to trail the tip of her tongue along the blonde's jaw line before sucking an earlobe into her mouth. Biting down gently, Faith groaned when Buffy bucked her hips against her own, reacting to the brunette's actions.

Shifting slightly, Faith dropped her head back as Buffy moved a leg between her own, and placed her hands on either side of Faith's head to hold herself up. Flicking her gaze up along Buffy's rapidly moving chest, Faith's eyes took in the older woman's swollen lips and dilated pupils, her green eyes darker than she ever remembered. Lifting her leg, Faith locked her eyes on Buffy's, silently willing her to be ready, because- in all honesty- despite pulling away from her, all of Faith's patience was gone.

"I want you," the sentence came out in a low, dangerously animalistic growl, and it took Faith almost as long as Buffy to realize what she had said,_ so much for not voicing my thoughts_.

Faith watched as Buffy's eyes widened in surprise before her eyes darkened just a bit more. _Wha__' ya gonna…_ The half thought vanished from Faith's brain the second that Buffy ground herself down onto the dark slayer's thigh, her own thigh pushing against the ridge of her jeans. Throwing her head back, Faith let out a sound halfway between a moan and groan, only to gasp when she felt Buffy land a kiss on her neck, sucking roughly, leaving what Faith knew would be a mark that wouldn't be disappearing within the next twelve hours. _Oh my fucking God…_ Gripping the sides of Buffy's face, Faith pulled her up, and kissed her roughly, trying to convey the need for release that was rapidly building up in her. Moaning in Faith's mouth, Buffy bucked her hips again, causing Faith to restrain a groan that turned into a deep hum in her throat.

Sliding a hand down to grip one of Buffy's breasts, Faith was getting the strong impression that Buffy would no longer hold back. She didn't give a shit at the moment as to why now and not earlier, or even later for that matter. However, she was currently about to kill whoever was making that extremely annoying speaker buzz loudly and continuously- thus causing Buffy to pull away.

"Fuck," Faith growled, watching Buffy stand up and jog over after glancing at her apologetically. Flicking the switch up, Buffy looked over at Faith as she spoke into the speaker.

"What?" The tone in her voice conveyed the look in her eyes- she was not happy about being interrupted.

"I'm sorry to bother you Buf, but T'wanii's down here and says that he's ready to talk. In my opinion, it took him damn long enough but whatev- he's down here now and I don't wanna make him wait and possibly clam up again. If Faith's with you, bring her down too," Xander spoke quickly back at her.

Sighing, a look of defeat in hers eyes, Buffy nodded, "All right, we'll be down in five."

Faith stared at Buffy, _so not fair._ Raking a hand through her hair, Faith took a deep breath and let it out before standing and moving over to Buffy, who was currently zipping up her pants. Leaning against the door, Faith watched Buffy buckle her belt and straighten out her shirt before finally looking over at her.

"So," Faith began.

"Yeah," Buffy replied before she walked over to her.

"I'm sorry about being closed off recently," Faith murmured, her eyelids dipping at the closeness of their bodies when Buffy copied her stance, and leaned against the other bedroom door.

"I'm sorry about jumping your bones," Buffy replied, a teasing grin on her face.

Faith smirked back, "Do me a favor and never apologize for that," leaning in, she gave Buffy a chaste kiss before pulling away, "Ever again."

Buffy nodded before she shifted the conversation, "I kinda got the whole distance thing, its sorta a trademark of yours."

Faith straightened up, "Hey, things change."

"I know," Buffy replied hastily, trying to smooth out her response, "I didn't mean to be all muckrake-y."

Faith raised her eyebrows at the word choice, but sighed, "You weren't wrong."

Buffy lifted her hand and trailed it along Faith's arm, slipping her fingers into the relaxed hand at the brunette's side, "C'mon, let's not get into a deep conversation now."

"Later?" Faith asked as she tightened her hold on Buffy's hand while opening the door.

"Definitely," Buffy answered, pulling the door shut as they walked down the hall.

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After meeting Xander in the kitchen, Buffy and Faith followed him downstairs into the training room. _Why all the way down here?_ Faith thought after entering through the swinging doors and seeing the bleachers almost filled up by Willow, Giles, Dawn, Sandra, Rona, Vi, Peter, Dan and the six women who made up the small coven that came over to help: Irene, Maggie, Emma, Beth, Joanna and Katherine. T'wanii was standing quietly, listening to something Willow was saying and smiled gently before nodding in agreement. As they drew closer, the group- which was emitting a quiet murmur of conversations- fell silent, as all eyes took in the three Scoobies. Taking a seat next to Peter and Dawn, Faith released Buffy's hand from her own as the shorter woman sat in front of her. Once they were all settled, T'wanii began to speak, his words slow and calculating- as if thinking heavily on how to say what he wanted to say.

"I am sorry for taking so long before talking to all of you, but it is my species' nature. I needed to come to peace with the loss of my clan first before I could broach the idea of thinking about the demons that destroyed them," T'wanii began, his unblinking eyes looking around at everyone before hovering on Faith for the longest moment, "The Kartuk are just one of a few dozens breeds of demons that have magicks powerful enough to open a shattered and unplotted portal to a demon dimension. Fortunately for you, only the Kartuk have the numbers to pull this off currently, when everything is lining up to allow it to happen. I have been speaking with Willow, and she told me that you all know of the Shadow Lands. The Shadow Lands is a dangerous dimension to create a portal to. It is not merely a demon dimension, but an outlaw demon dimension, which is something else entirely from what you have faced over the years." _Of course it is._

"I know that some of you have faced a true demon, and I will tell you right off that this upcoming fight will most likely parallel that battle- with the one difference being that there will be more than just one pure demon. Outlawed demons are notorious for the fact that it must take incredible deeds to be banned from their natural dimension. There are various dimensions where the demons rule their worlds, and since they do, they must follow certain – lax – laws that are extremely unrestrictive, and because they are so permissive, it must take something astonishing for a demon to get into real, true trouble. All of this means that the demons that will be coming here once the Shadow Lands portal is open are quite possibly the worst of the things you have ever fought rolled into one and multiplied.

"There is a positive side to all of this," T'wanii continued after a general sigh was emitted from most of the group, "The Kartuk's power for the apocalypse lies heavily with their shamans. If you have a power attack lined up to specifically destroy them, it should make your battle far easier."

It took a couple of seconds after T'wanii fell silent before anyone realized that he had finished, and, after glancing at a couple of other people, Faith saw her own thoughts mirrored in their eyes, _shit._

"Is it me, or is there always some big cosmic thing lining up just in time to ruin our lives annually?" Xander piped up, eliciting grins and quiet laughter to make its way through the group.

"It does seem that way, doesn't it?" Dawn replied, grinning.

"It's worse than April 15th, and that's saying something," Rona murmured, to another set of louder laughter.

"What's April 15th?" T'wanii asked, cocking his head to one side in confusion.

"Tax day," Buffy answered, still smiling, "Every year, your taxes must be paid by April 15th…"

"…Or the IRS will hunt you down and audit you for all you're worth," Faith continued, grinning.

For a moment, no one spoke, the mood had lightened considerably since T'wanii had dropped his bomb of information, and Faith was feeling slightly more hopeful. As the grins faded, and silence once again fell upon the group, Willow murmured, as if as an afterthought,

"Ah, death and taxes."

There was another moment of silence as the group took in what she said, processing it slowly. Within a few seconds, Xander barked out a laugh, and the group again began laughing.

"If the world ever ends, the IRS will survive, along with the cockroaches," Vi commented, keeping the joking mood going.

It was a few more minutes before the group realized that everything that needed to be said at the moment had been said, and people slowly started standing. Before anyone really started leaving, Willow called out loud enough to get everyone's attention,

"I'll have a research system set up tomorrow, and I'll let everyone know what's being done and who's doing what. Nothing is mundane, and even if you see something that doesn't relate to what you are supposed to be researching, take note. Vi, Rona, I'll call you tomorrow morning with particulars. If no one has any questions?" No one spoke as Willow scanned the group with raised brows, "All righty. Irene, if you and the rest of the Coven could follow me back up, everyone else can go. Thanks T'wanii for helping us."

T'wanii bowed slightly at the waist, remaining silent. As everyone filed out, Faith stayed seated, watching T'wanii. Sparing a glance at Buffy, she saw the blonde smile gently before exiting last. It was a moment or so before T'wanii looked over at Faith, and yet he didn't seem surprised that she hadn't left.

"T, what's up?" Faith asked quietly.

T'wanii took a moment to respond, and Faith watched him blink- a rarity of his that usually meant that he was thinking.

Speaking again in that slow, calculating tone, T'wanii said, "I feel that I should not have waited this long to tell all of you, as time is not to your advantage, and yet, I also feel as if I have handed over a heavy burden that may have done more harm than help."

Faith opened her mouth, only to shut it again at a loss for words. After remaining silent for an extra moment, Faith again opened her mouth, "T, it's good that you told us. Right now, we need all the help we can get- even if it does make things seem worse. Better to know it's worse than we were imagining instead of getting to the fight and finding out then."

"You say that like you learned the hard way," T'wanii reflected casually.

Memories of an almost catastrophic failure during an apocalypse in South Africa flooded Faith's mind before she shook her head, "Yeah, well, it happens. You learn and grow."

"Adaptation is a key capability in your life," T'wanii observed.

Faith snorted, "That's one way to describe it."

"I don't understand," T'wanii shook his head, confused.

_Oh where to begin_, "My life hasn't been…" Trailing off, Faith tried to think of an easy way to explain her complicated life to date, "It hasn't been simple," _Ha, and the Understatement of the Year Award goes to…_ "Adaptation came easily 'cause I never knew a time when I didn't need it."

T'wanii nodded, "I understand."

"Yeah," Faith stretched, feeling slightly unnerved by the topic, "I'm gonna head up, unless there's somethin' else you wanted to talk about?"

T'wanii, apparently sensing her discomfort, shook his head, "No, but thank you for speaking with me."

"No worries," Faith inclined her head before standing and leaving, sensing him follow her out before he exited the mansion through the dining room to head out to the barn.

Faith wandered up the stairs, making her way slowly to hers and Buffy's room. Seeing Willow's door open, Faith peeked inside and saw Kennedy rummaging around in a dresser, the sound of the shower on in the bathroom muffling Faith's quiet entry.

"Hey Ken, how'd patrolling go?" Faith asked, leaning on the doorframe.

Kennedy spun around, surprised at the sound of Faith's voice, and Faith saw the rip in the sleeve of her shirt. Glancing towards the bed, a similar rip could be seen in the leather coat that had been chucked onto it.

"You okay?" Faith asked, moving into the room.

"Oh this?" Kennedy grinned, "Fucking tree branch. Vamp knocked me back while I was in the woods, and I got attacked by Mother Nature. How kind of her. Naturally I used it to kill the bloodsucker."

"Karmic cycle," Faith smirked.

"Totally," Kennedy nodded, "Ai'ight, I gotta hit the shower. It was a muddy night, and I've got vamp dust in the oddest places."

"Overshare," Faith said, shaking her head, "Enjoy."

"Yup, lata."

"Night," Faith nodded before leaving and walking down the long hall.

The door to the master bedroom was ajar, and Faith slipped in, shutting it behind her. Seeing Buffy wander out of the bathroom with a toothbrush in her mouth, in a tank and shorts caused Faith to stop and laugh at the image.

"Wha?" Buffy asked, only to have the toothpaste foam up immediately when she spoke, causing her to run back to the bathroom.

Faith heard her spit out some toothpaste and then the sound of the other slayer brushing her teeth resumed. Walking to the dresser, Faith pulled out a gray undershirt, stripped down to her panties and pulled on the shirt. Turning at the sound of Buffy climbing into bed, Faith moved to the bathroom to finish getting ready for bed.

When she was done, Faith turned off the bathroom light and sat down on the bed, looking over at Buffy, "You still wanna talk?"

"Yeah," Buffy nodded.

"Okay," Faith fell silent, trying to think of what to say. Then, after a few moments, "I'm sorry I pulled away, I got scared, and that's still new to me. I've never been in l-" Faith stalled, _I was not about to say the L word…_ "In a relationship – or at least a healthy one – before," Faith finished, noting the jerk of Buffy's head as she switched gears in what she was going to say, _so not ready to go there yet. Not even ready to think about it yet._

Buffy remained silent for a moment, a wary look on her face, as if gauging whether to call her on the almost spoken word or not. Faith felt relief wash over her when Buffy spoke, but not about Faith's faltering word choices, "I get that. I just need you to be able to talk to me. This is a give and take thing, Faith."

Faith nodded, a guilty look upon her features, "I know. I mean I kept pushing you – albeit slightly- about us, and then you get attacked, and I pull a complete 180."

Buffy smiled gently, "It wasn't all bad," Off of Faith's confused look, "Try to remember who started our earlier activities."

Faith grinned at Buffy's word choice, "Are you blaming me for making you a top?"

"A what?"

"A top. Dominant. In charge," Faith explained, still grinning.

Buffy's eyes widened, "I don't wanna be a top."

Faith let out a low chuckle, "Good, 'cause I am."

Buffy smiled knowingly at Faith before a look of confusion caused her to furrow her brow, "What am I then?"

"Well, if I'm a top, then that would make you a bottom," Faith replied, pretending to think it over.

Buffy smirked, "Not all the time though."

_Oh this will be fun,_ Faith thought as she turned off her light, watching Buffy mimic her, "Give and take then?" She asked ask she moved onto her side to hold the other woman against her.

"Yeah," Buffy breathed, curling her back into Faith, "Definitely."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Faith leaned against the basement wall, feeling the vibrations from the loud speakers nearby run through her. She was watching a competitive pool game in front of her, along with the three other people who were currently waiting their turn at a game. Faith was paired with Jack, and would be playing against Kennedy and Rona in the next game, while Tracy and Tonya were currently attempting to beat Aggie and Jess. Learning everyone's names and ages had been the hard part, and Faith found that finding things in common or things to do with the younger slayers was far easier. The sound of Jess cursing Tonya in what sounded like German made its way to Faith's ears, and she saw that Tonya had just sunk two solids in one shot- leaving only the 8-ball to sink left. Movement fluttered in the left of Faith's peripheral vision, and she turned her head to see Giles finish coming down the last three steps into the basement.

Hearing a cry of happiness emitted from Aggie signaling that Tonya had failed in her attempt, Faith walked over to Giles. Giles looked over at the speakers, as if willing them to be quieter, but settled on taking his glasses off and cleaning them as Faith came to stand next to him. They stood side by side in silence for a few moments, watching the heated pool game before Giles spoke.

"I'm proud of you," Faith blinked, surprised at the words, _in all the years, I'd never expect that to come outta your mouth_, "Of how far you've come, of who you have grown into, and especially, how you help her," Faith knew the "her" he was referring to, and continued to remain silent, "Even with Angel there was a barrier that neither of them could overcome- no matter how much they wanted to- but not with you. If anything, by being who you are, you are more like her than anyone else could hope to be- and that in itself makes all the difference."

"Uhh, thanks?" Faith turned to look over at Giles, not sure of his true intention for talking to her about this, "Not to sound like an ass, but what's this all about?"

Giles shifted more weight onto one foot and looked like he was thinking about what he was going to say before speaking, "I am glad that you came back- and not just because you are a great warrior to have with us."

"I'm glad I came back too," Faith murmured, and shuffled from one foot to the other in slight discomfort, _might as well mend all the wounds_, "Thanks for…" Faith faltered, "Forgiving me."

Giles blinked, and a look of slight surprise made its way across his face, "Faith, I have seen many horrible things in my life. I have been the source of torture, hatred, murder, and apathy, as well as a victim of them from others. To forgive you was something that required me to reflect on my past. I came to the conclusion back when I heard that you had gone to prison by your own choice, that to not forgive you would be an insult to the others that either forgave me or asked for my forgiveness."

Faith smirked, "You sound like Angel."

Giles smiled gently, "Yes, well, keep in mind my history with Angel," Faith's smirk dropped from her face, "Forgiveness and redemption are things that keep him going, as it is for most of us that take wrong turns on our individual paths."

It wasn't until Giles had said this that Faith realized how much she had in common with the Watcher. Swallowing, Faith looked over at the slayers, and saw them laughing, waiting patiently for Faith to finish talking with Giles.

"I should have spoken with you before now, but regardless…" Giles waved his hand, "I just wanted to say what I said."

"Thanks," And this time, Faith meant it.

Giles smiled reassuringly, "No need. Go on, they're waiting for you."

Faith glanced back over at the girls before nodding to Giles and turning to go over to the table. Picking up a cue stick, Faith saw his foot rise out of sight up the stairwell before turning to focus on the game.

"So, who's ass are we gonna kick?" Faith asked Jack, gaining a grin from the girl.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sleep had come to Faith in bits and pieces the previous night, fragments of nightmares revolving around Buffy and a giant attacking tomato kept her from getting barely three hours of sleep. She had wandered into Dawn's room to talk with her before her court date with Tracy and her father, only to fall asleep on the younger Summers' bed. The only reason Faith woke up finally, was because she had rolled off of the bed in her slumber and hit the floor.

"Faith? You okay?" Dawn's concerned voiced jolted Faith further awake.

"Peachy," Faith replied in her sea of tangled blankets. Opening her eyes slowly, Faith took in her current position, "You have gigantic dust bunnies under your bed."

Dawn's laughter woke her up more, and Faith slowly sat up.

If Dawn's laughter was loud before, it became more so once Faith's head appeared next to the mattress.

"Oh my…Faith…" Dawn attempted to speak, but couldn't stop laughing, "Your… hair…"

Sitting still a moment longer to allow Dawn her moment of hilarity, Faith kept a sardonic look on her face as she commented, "Probably due to whatever lives under your bed."

At this, Dawn's laughter stopped, and a look of hurt crossed the young woman's face, "Hey, I dust under there!"

"When? Annually?" Faith remarked, running a hand through- what she could tell- was a rather interesting hairstyle.

"Funny," Dawn shook her head before moving to sit on her bed, Faith climbing back up on it, "So, you've been asleep all day?"

"What?!" Faith looked over at the clock, which read 8:45 PM, "Fuck! Why didn't you wake me?"

"Buffy told me not to. Though, if I had known you would've woken up by such ungraceful methods…"

"Oh fuck off, how did it go?" Faith switched topics, ignoring the fact that she just slept through an entire day.

"Everything was settled out of court; Tracy's father paid all of the traffic and medical fees, and even paid us an extra bonus fee to not pull him back into court. I didn't care about the money, I just wanted him to- pardon the phrase- pay."

"Well that's good," Faith nodded, "You okay then?"

"Oh yeah, I'm good. He looked miserable, which made all of us happy," Dawn grinned, and then switched topics, "By the way, the rest of dinner is in the fridge, and Buffy and Vi took Britt, Cherie and Gia out on a patrol, so they'll be back by 10."

Faith nodded, feeling her stomach growling, "'K. I'm gonna head down to eat. Wanna come with?"

"Nah, you go on. I'm gonna catch up on some homework," Dawn waved Faith out, picking up a few books from the floor beside her bed as she spoke.

As Faith headed down the stairs to the kitchen, she couldn't help but think about whether this was all just the calm before the storm.


	20. Prelude

Sorry about the long break! I blame this intense new school semester. Hope this is good despite the wait.

Prepare yourselves for another long wait on the next chapter (I am NOT abandoning it!—it's too heavily outlined to do that!)

AN: I did my best not to butcher the German language, let me know if I did.

* * *

_Faith walked through the deserted streets, snow falling silently around her. Her boots crunched the snow beneath her feet, packing it tightly into footprints. The fantasy of being in Germany in the middle of winter seemed like a stupid idea to her now. She hadn't exactly planned out her cross-continent travels, and Angel only slightly guiding her whenever she called him every couple of months. He would give general information about things going on in nearby locations- read, less than 5000 miles away- and she would pick whichever she decided was closest, more appealing, or more in need of her help. She was never given an exact location, but instead- as she put it- followed the screams._

_Her Slayer dreams- which, not unlike Buffy's, albeit more sinister- would transform into horror-filled nightmares that she would only fleetingly remember upon waking. They would depict the horrors of what could happen in the most evil of ways. Faith hated sleeping for the sole reason that her dreams –while they steered her towards her goal – made the normally restive human necessity fitful and she would enter into it with apprehension._

_It was on these thoughts that Faith sensed vampires lurking nearby- the scream of a woman giving her all the persuasion to investigate. Sprinting over to an alcove outside of a church, Faith slid to a stop mere meters from two vampires and dropped her bag of weapons to the ground with a muffled thud in the snow._

"_Aren't you worried about getting frostbite?" Faith drawled in English, causing the vamps to spin to face her, the helpless woman's arm tightly grasped in one of their hands._

"_S-slayer," the vamp who was holding the woman hissed back in strongly accented German._

"_Guess my reputation has gotten around. Kinda hoped it wouldn't," Faith shrugged, "You know rumors."_

"_You're gonna be dead before you have to worry about that," the vamp that wasn't holding the woman replied in rough English, the words barely understandable with his strong German accent._

"_You know, you guys have gotta come up with more imaginative lines," Faith remarked, sidestepping the vamp, and used his momentum to push him into the stone church wall._

_The sickening sound of a skull cracking and the howl of pain echoed along the alcove and out into the street as Faith moved forward to the other vampire who still held onto the woman. Yanking the woman up against him, he cupped her chin with his hand, and Faith paused, knowing how easily he could snap her neck. Hearing the other vamp finally stumbling back up, Faith turned around and landed a kick to his sternum, before following him to where he slammed against the wall again and staked him. Swiveling around in a crouch, Faith watched the other vamp's eyes go wide before releasing the woman and running for his undead life. Running back to her bag, Faith pulled out a hand-held crossbow with a bolt locked into place. Running past the woman, Faith took careful aim at the vamp running down the deserted street._

_Letting the bolt fly, a ghost of a smile appeared on Faith's face at the sound of the vamp dusting before she turned back to the woman, "Sind sie in ordnung?" Are you all right? _

"_Ja." Yes. _

"_Gehen sie nach hause," Go home. , Faith commanded gently, grasping the woman's shoulder warmly._

"_Vielen dank." Thank you. The woman replied, tears in her eyes._

_Faith nodded silently to the woman and watched her run off. She was currently very glad that she had learned some German beforehand. Walking over to her bag, Faith put the crossbow away and slung the bag over her shoulder, dusting the snow off of it as she did so. As she began walking, Faith entered a park, continuing her patrol._

_Coming to a bench, Faith smiled gently at the blonde sitting there in a pair of plaid pajama pants and a muscle shirt, her arms crossed and an expression of confusion etched across her face._

"_What are you doing here?" Faith asked as she stood over the blonde, who had just noticed the dark Slayer's presence._

_Buffy looked up at Faith, taking her in before speaking, "Time's running out Faith, lay out your cards before it's too late."_

_-----------------------------_

Faith bolted upright in bed, rolling away from Buffy as she did so. Buffy sat up almost as quickly and flicked on her bedside lamp.

"Wha…Where?" Buffy's less than coherent questions focused Faith, who took a deep breath before answering.

"You bumped into a memory I was dreaming about," Faith started.

"Where were we?"

"Dresden, Germany."

"Germany?!" Buffy turned and looked at the brunette in surprise, "When the hell did you go there?"

"Around a year and a half after I left you," Faith replied quietly.

"Oh," Buffy's voice softened, and silence fell between the two, "Why were you dreaming it?"

"Because of my dreams," Faith started with a sigh, "They've been bothering me since I came here, and for some reason, I just didn't really put my finger fully on it because I never remembered anything, but now…"

"What?" Buffy prodded gently, turning to face the other Chosen One.

"Now, I think I went back to that memory because it was that night that I was mulling over my dreams," Faith replied, "Kinda like a subconscious way of smacking myself upside the head from the inside."

"Huh," Buffy smirked at Faith's comment, "Why didn't you ever tell me about your dreams before?"

"I didn't remember them, so I never connected that they might've been important to tell you anyway," Faith shrugged, "I don't always pick up on shit, okay?"

"Okay," Buffy lifted her hands in surrender, "I'm sorry."

"Have you been dreaming anything as of late?"

Buffy shook her head, "Tonight was the first time, and I don't remember anything until you walked up to me. I felt like I was sitting there, but I didn't make the words come out of my mouth, they just… happened."

"That's…interesting," Faith mused, leaning back against the headboard.

"Yeah," Buffy agreed.

The pair fell silent again before Buffy broke into Faith's thoughts by asking, "When you remembered your dreams, what were they about?"

Faith stiffened slightly and closed her eyes,_why did you have to ask?_

"Faith?" Buffy inquired, her voice softer, and yet, closer.

Faith opened her eyes and saw that Buffy had moved slightly nearer to her, making the space between them intimate,_safe_.

"They were…" Faith stopped and swallowed, "They were nightmares…of hell, and torture, and death. They would guide me to the next place that I would go to help people. As the nightmares worsened, I knew I was getting close. Every night I spent in the place where I was led was terrifying. I learned to sleep in sets of three or four hours to reduce the images that would be seared into my memory."

"God, Faith, I…"

"It's okay. Not every night was horrible. Some nights were cryptic," Faith joked darkly. "I guess tonight was my brain's way of saying that just because I wasn't remembering the nightmares didn't mean they weren't happening."

"Which means?" Buffy prodded.

"Which means that the apocalypse is gonna be comin' soon, and the Kartuk's base camp is within a 500 mile radius of here," Faith explained, rubbing her temples before getting out of the bed.

"Well, why don't we get Willow and Andrew to work on pinpointing the place where ol' One-Hand Bates or whatever his name was, was held captive?" Buffy asked, her gaze following Faith across the room, "At least we might have something to track or…something," She finished lamely.

"Beatman?" Buffy raised her hand in a silent amendment to messing up the name, "Yeah, we could do that," Faith nodded before sighing and yanking a pair of jeans, a bra, socks, and a deep red muscle shirt out of her drawers. Moving into the bathroom, Faith dressed quickly before pulling on the boots she had left in there the night before. A sense of restlessness had awakened within her, and Faith felt the need to move. After exiting the bathroom, Faith pulled her hair back into a ponytail, and grabbed her jean jacket. She had just made it to the door when Buffy finally spoke.

"Where are you going Faith? It's four in the morning," Buffy had moved to sit on the end of the bed, her feet hanging limply over the edge of the bench at the end.

Faith, hand gripping the doorknob tightly, sighed, and lowered her head, "I can't stay here right now. I-I need to get out, think…fuck, I need to clear my head."

"Faith…" Buffy began, and Faith sensed a round of attempts to keep her in the mansion.

Taking a deep breath, Faith turned to look back at the blonde Slayer and cut off whatever she was going to say, "Look, I'll be back later. I just… I need space."

Faith felt the mask of her younger self shifting into place, and the hurt look on Buffy's face as she left was all she needed to see to know that Buffy recognized it as well. Striding down the hall, Faith shook her head, trying to find an equilibrium between the mixture of frustration, fear and guilt that were raging within her mind. As she silently exited the house into the garage, Faith pressed the door opener before grabbing her helmet from the seat of her Ducati and rolling it out and down the drive way. When she had wheeled the bike around the first curve in the driveway, and the mansion was mostly obscured by the surrounding forest, Faith threw her leg over the seat, pulled on her helmet, and kick-started the bike. Revving it just enough to get down the driveway, Faith kept the sound to a minimum so as to keep the rest of the people in the mansion from waking. Once out on the main road however, she went full throttle, and welcomed the feeling of the roaring engine between her legs. With all thoughts draining from her mind, Faith let her body take control, finding comfort in how merely riding her bike could calm her.

It was almost an hour later when Faith pulled into a 24-hour restaurant. Pulling the helmet from her head, she looked around at the nearly vacant eatery, before walking up to the counter. A waitress leaned against the back wall, her jaw moving in a jerky motion to compensate for the large piece of gum that she was chewing. Faith watched the woman size her up before pushing herself from the wall and move towards the counter, the smile on her face not quite making it to her eyes.

"Mornin' Sweets. Anything I can get for ya?"

Faith glanced up at the chalked menu over the waitress's shoulder, "Coffee, black, and a blueberry muffin."

"Bag it?" the woman asked as she moved to the coffee pot, a styrofoam cup in her hand.

"Yeah," Faith replied, pulling a bunch of folded bills from her back pocket, her driver's license slipping a bit from the middle.

"$3.50," the woman finished as she secured a cover on the coffee and walked over to the far wall where a set of shelves filled with various croissants, crullers, donuts, bagels and muffins were shut behind clear glass doors.

Faith dropped $4 onto the counter as the waitress came back over, the coffee in one hand, and a paper bag in another.

"Keep the change," Faith stated as she picked up the coffee and bag in one hand, held her helmet in the other, and turned to leave.

"Thanks dahlin'," the waitress called out after her.

Faith glanced over her shoulder as she pushed open the door and nodded quickly to her before exiting. _Normalcy in an already fucked up day._

* * *

Faith hadn't checked her phone – which conveniently was on silent mode- since she had stopped at the restaurant. The sun had appeared over the horizon, but aside from that, she had no knowledge of time. However, she could tell from the non-interstate highway she was on that she had entered into a more rural and hilly part of Ohio. _Nothin' like New England though._ Taking the next exit off of the highway, Faith came to a stop at the end of the ramp, her eyes widening before furrowing her brow in thought. To her right stood a sign informing her that Forest Hills State Park could be found down the road to her right. _Well isn't this coincidence?_ Deciding not to wonder just how in the world she ended up at the very place that she and Buffy had been discussing before her quick departure, Faith took the turn, deciding to attempt at least a little reconnaissance while she was up here, being all avoidy. _Avoidy- now that's definitely proof that I've been around B for too long,_ Faith mused, her eyes scanning the road signs as she turned left up a road that inevitably lead to the park.

A few minutes later, Faith pulled into the main parking lot. Killing the engine, Faith glanced around at the only two vehicles in the lot, _early birds._ Getting off of the Ducati, Faith freed her head from the helmet and placed it on the end of the bike as she freed her hair from its secure ponytail while she strode towards the Visitor's Center. Pulling open the glass door, Faith glanced around, and noticed the overly cheerful Park Ranger chatting with a less-than perky Ranger at the reception desk. Striding over, the two turned to look at her, and she flashed a smile that she hoped was not off-putting. The Ranger behind the desk yawned as she stood before sparing a guilty look at the other Ranger and smiled welcomingly at Faith.

"Good morning and welcome to the Forest Hills State Park. If you have any questions, you can ask any Ranger you see, or come here if you cannot find anyone. The trails and pond are free of charge, as this is a State Park, and restrooms can be found both in this building as well as down near the pond beach area," The woman greeted Faith.

Faith smiled, "Thanks, I do have a question, actually."

The Ranger raised her eyebrows slightly, "Yes?"

"I'm from out of state, and I'm conducting a countrywide road trip and survey of random State Parks, and I have a few… odd…questions," The second Ranger perked up slightly at her phrasing, but Faith noticed that he otherwise didn't move, "Have you had any problems with wild animals or attacks of any kind in the general vicinity of the park lands in the past year?"

"Well, Ranger Timlon would know more about that I would, as I'm relatively new here," The Ranger at the desk gestured to the Ranger next to Faith.

Faith turned to face him, retaining a look of curiosity as he spoke, "Well ma'am, this is a park, and animals are known for doing their damage over the years. I would have to say that there have been various bear incidents up in the northernmost section of this park, but there are no trails or camp sites out there, and we only really find other animals that are victims. It's strange, considering that there is no real pattern in conjunction with the seasons, but we don't completely understand animals. Do you have any other questions?"

"Just one," Faith smiled gently, "Do you have any tagged bear breeds?"

The Ranger shifted, "Well yes we do, the black bears can be found in the section I told you. They don't venture out of their area too often."

Faith nodded, "Thank you, that's all I wanted to ask."

"Mind if I ask what this survey is for?" Ranger Timlon asked as Faith turned to grab a map of the trails.

"Oh, it's for my graduate paper on how different breeds of bears act in different areas of the country. I wanted to do some real footwork for it, and not just check books and the internet. I'm an outdoorsy kinda person, so it seemed like a great idea," Faith lied, raising her hand to loop a few locks of hair behind her ear, completing the act.

"Well you don't hear that too often these days, do ya Bri?" Timlon chuckled, "Nice to know that not all the youngin's are stuck indoors. Enjoy the park," Timlon touched the brim of his hat as Faith smiled back before exiting out the glass doors.

Sighing, Faith walked towards the Trail entrance to her left, pulling open the map as she did so. Glancing down at the half-dozen or more trails that would split out in about a half mile, Faith saw that one- the Blue trail- led the closest to the northern edge before the park was left to the wildlife. Folding the map and sticking it into her back pocket, Faith began what she figured would be a long hike.

* * *

It was over an hour later when Faith finally came to a halt in the trail. Cinching the jacket arms' knot around her waist tighter, Faith rubbed her forearm across her damp forehead,_no shit it's a hike._ Pulling the map from her back pocket, Faith figured the soft U- turn she was starting in the trail was the edge she was looking for. From the looks of the map, a utility road ran parallel to the top of the U-turn about a mile further into the woods. Following the road out, it seemed to dump out in one of the Ranger's two parking lots near the visitor's center. Folding the map up, Faith walked further into the topmost part of the U before glancing around, _oh yeah, like anyone's gonna see me…_Faith shook her head before stepping off of the trail, careful not to flick leaves around at the edge to give a clue to her off-limits excursion.

The sun was warm in the late April weather, and Faith felt sweat dampening the hair at the base of her neck. Pulling her hair tie from her pants pocket, Faith pulled her hair back into a ponytail, the heat of the sun immediately beating down on her exposed neck. Moving further into the untamed woods, Faith moved in and out of direct sunlight, the moments in the shade a blessing. Staying in a relatively straight line, Faith decided that if she found nothing in the next thirty minutes, to make a 180º turn and head straight back out. Focusing heavily on specific landmarks, Faith moved forward as quietly as possible.

--------------------------------

"_We're lost, aren't we?" Glenn asked through his mouthpiece inside his helmet, his hands wrapped around Faith's waist._

"_No. We're merely taking the scenic root," Faith replied as she slowed down slightly to take a sharp curve._

"_In Russia?" Glenn shot back._

_Faith was silent a moment, "We're lost."_

"_I knew we should've asked for directions back in Omsk."_

"_Oh shut up. You should've known where we were going anyway, you're my contact," Faith grumbled back._

"_I don't really know the Russian language," Glenn mumbled._

_Faith hit the brakes, the tires squealing and leaving smoke as they came to a quick stop, "What?"_

"_I thought you would!" Glenn explained defensively._

"_Why the fuck would you think I would?" Faith shot back, turning to look back at him as she flicked her visor up._

"_You know German."_

"_That's not Russian you ass!" Faith countered angrily, "You've got ten seconds to explain to me why I need you for this mission before I leave you here to freeze."_

_Glenn flicked his visor up, "I know the family of half demons you need to help. They only trust me, and they speak Polish, which is my primary language."_

_Faith looked hard at him, "Where are they?"_

"_Bamaul."_

_Faith turned around and flicked down her visor, "We're going the right way."_

"_East?"_

"_Yeah," Faith revved the engine and accelerated, hearing Glenn swear as he flicked his visor down before tightening his grip around her waist._

_------------------------------------------  
_

Faith figured she'd almost given herself another hour as she came to halt at a nearby creek bed. Glancing around, Faith sighed, _Maybe I was wrong_. Shaking her head, Faith began to walk back before noticing a large clump of bushes._Odd_. Faith cocked her head to one side before approaching it a bit. Seeing an arrangement of rocks into a small pyramid at the creek to her left and a similar arrangement to her right about 50 feet away, Faith stopped. _Odder still._ Deciding not to walk between the two small rock formations, Faith backed away. The clump of bushes turned into a camouflaged structure up close, but she could see why it didn't stand out to her immediately from a distance.

Turning back the way she came, Faith pulled a small pocket knife from her jean jacket. Carving out a small notch in three trees, Faith marked her area. For the hour walk back, Faith did the same thing every five hundred feet. After passing over the utility road a second time, Faith turned down it and walked alongside it, pulling the map from her back pocket to make sure she was going the right way. After putting the map away, Faith gathered a small bunch of sticks from the side of the road and broke them up. Making a small, unobtrusive pile, Faith marked a spot almost a hundred feet from where she had come from the woods before continuing on down the road.

* * *

When she finally arrived near the end of the utility road, Faith slipped back into the woods. Staying about fifty feet in, Faith moved quietly around the parking lot, the map pulled out to direct her toward where she parked her bike one lot over. She didn't want anyone to see her come strolling out of the road- that would raise too many questions. Vying for remaining hidden, Faith kept one eye on the Ranger's parking lot and one on where she was walking, careful not to step on sticks, minimizing her presence as much as possible.

When she finally got over to her lot, Faith watched from the woods as a family of five tumbled out of a van near to where she stood in the woods and started walking towards the Visitor's Center. Exiting the woods while using the van as cover, Faith walked quickly to her motorcycle. Grabbing the helmet from the seat, Faith threw her leg over the side and pulled the helmet on. Kick starting the bike, Faith backed up before leaving the park and flooring it back to the mansion.

It was a long ride, and Faith realized that she must've driven well over and hour and a half away from the mansion. As the words on the signs became more familiar, Faith felt a surge of adrenaline at getting back and letting everyone know what she saw. When Faith finally made her way back onto the road where the mansion was, she saw a familiar SUV coming towards her. Smiling despite herself, Faith revved the engine a bit more and cut in front of the vehicle- beating it into the entrance to the driveway. As she weaved her way up the driveway, the sound of the driver beeping at her caused her smile to grow and she glanced over her shoulder to look back at the SUV behind her.

Pulling into the garage, Faith killed the engine and freed her head from the confines of the helmet before getting off of the Ducati and looking over at the SUV as Buffy, Dawn, Britt and Shane climbed out, groceries in their arms.

"Nice moves," Dawn stated flatly, a hint of a smile at the edges of her eyes.

"Just keepin' ya on ya toes, girl," Faith replied, grinning as she helped them with the bags.

"Where've you been?" Buffy asked nonchalantly as the group entered the mansion and walked down the hall towards the kitchen.

"Out," Faith replied shortly, then, glancing over her shoulder, "Actually I need to tell you and whoever's here some things that I found out while I was gone."

"Oh?" Dawn asked, her gaze flicking from her sister to the dark Slayer.

Faith saw the pointed look of hurt Buffy gave her but shrugged it off as she began to put the food away, "Yeah. Do you guys know who's around?"

"I'll go check, meet you in Willow's in five?" Dawn asked, as she shoved the last plastic bag into another bulging one underneath the sink.

Faith nodded before exiting the kitchen to make a hasty retreat to the bathroom near the garage.

She had heard another pair of steps follow her quietly, and it wasn't until she was washing her hands that a soft knock sounded on the door of the half-bath.

Faith looked up towards the door, "Come in."

The appearance of Buffy was not a surprise to her. Buffy shut the door behind her and leaned against it, almost as if it were the only thing keeping her from falling. Regarding her silently for moment, Faith broke the eye contact and sighed, turning her head away to look at herself in the mirror.

"Faith…" Buffy began hesitantly.

"I'm sorry I bailed on ya, B," Faith cut in, dropping her eyes to the faucet, "I just… I needed to get away for a bit."

Buffy was silent for a moment, before quietly commenting, "Some things never change?"

Faith allowed a ghost of a smile to grace her features for a moment at the light undertone in the statement, knowing it wasn't a dig at her, "Some things," Faith lifted her foot and dropped the toe to the ground, playing with the edge of the rug before turning to lean sideways against the sink top, her gaze meeting the blonde's, "Are we okay?"

Buffy smiled softly, "I think so. Just don't listen to all of the messages I left on your phone."

"How many…" Faith began as she pulled her phone out of her pocket, "Eighteen messages? What the fuck…"

"You didn't get any of them?" Buffy cut in, surprised.

"I had my phone on silent, I didn't check it at all," Faith explained as she put her phone away.

"Just delete them, what I said doesn't matter now," Buffy continued, a look of fear on her face as Faith pocketed the phone.

"What'd you say?" Faith asked, her tone dropping an octave, a sense of nervousness bubbling within her stomach.

Buffy blushed guiltily, but before she could reply, Dawn's voice cut through the wood door, "Will you two kiss and make up so Faith can tell us what she learned already?"

Faith grinned, and Buffy shut her eyes, a similar grin on her face, "We'll be out in a sec Brat."

"I said…" Buffy started, only to be cut off by Faith.

"Doesn't matter, we good?"

Buffy eyed the brunette for a long moment before an impish grin spread across her face, "Five by five."

* * *

"Is this everyone?" Faith asked, her eyebrows arching at the sight of only a handful of the core group that was currently gathered in Willow's study.

"Work, school, errands, commitments…" Willow began.

"A lack of afternoon classes…" Dawn cut in, grinning, before becoming serious at the look the witch shot her.

"We're the ones who don't have a life, apparently," Willow finished, a mirth-filled smirk gracing her features as she twirled a ballpoint pen between her fingers while leaning against the front of her desk.

"So spill. The rest'll get the Reader's Digest version later," Dawn added, crossing her arms as she leaned against the side of a bookcase.

"Ai'ight," Faith sighed, thinking about where to begin, _definitely not the exact beginning_. Shaking her head, Faith made a mental note to inform Giles and Willow of her dreams after Buffy left and thus would be spared any embarrassment. Taking another breath, Faith took the plunge, "I woke up early, before dawn. I was… restless. I had to move, it's how I deal, so I hopped on my bike and peaced…"

* * *

It was almost an hour later when Faith finished retelling the day's events. The group remained quiet for a few moments, digesting the new information, before Willow suddenly stood up and began pacing.

"We could take a team up to Forest Hills and check to see if what you described as a barrier spell is functioning, or just made to look the part. Then, once that's settled, you guys could go in and scout it out," Willow stated, full pace-mode aiding with her thought process.

"Scout only, no fighting?" Buffy asked, clarifying.

"Yes," Giles replied, catching Willow's glance before pulling off his glasses to clean them, "There seems to be a link between the pair of you attacking the Kartuk and their life force removal spells. They appear to be retaliating for your assaults on their clan- possibly as a way to hide their true motive for doing them in the first place."

"Do you think that if we just avoid engaging them, we could hold off their little apocalypse?" Buffy asked, placing her hands on the back of the couch and leaning her weight on it.

"For a time, possibly, but they will do their final spell on one of you eventually, regardless if it will also be as an act of retribution. I don't think you should avoid fighting them for too long after the first time- especially if they become aware of what you're trying to do," Giles explained, putting his glasses back on.

"I personally would like to buy as much time as possible for us to prepare for this apocalypse before we get to the final countdown," Faith commented, shifting her weight to the opposite foot.

"No way to avoid it then?" Dawn asked, "We're definitely gonna be hearing R.E.M.'s song on playback in the trauma ward?"

Buffy chuckled before sobering, "I have got to make sure we don't let Sandra do that ever again."

"Glad to know she gets black humor," Faith smirked, shaking her head, getting an idea of what she must have missed while out on her own.

"Yeah, well, she only did it before the shit hit the fan," Buffy explained, "Then it wasn't so funny."

"Well duh," Faith commented, before winking at the blonde.

A less tense silence fell upon the small group before Willow broke it for the second time, redirecting the conversation back to the most pressing issue, "Well, when Andrew and the Coven get back here, we'll do extensive research. Until then, Giles- would you like to help Dawn and I research?"

Giles smiled softly and nodded, "Of course."

"All righty, let's aim for an outing tomorrow. Buffy, pick out who you want to go with us and we'll bang out the plans around ten tonight. Sound good?"

"Peachy," Buffy replied simply.

"'K, we're good for now," Willow's eyes meet both Slayers', silently letting them know that they could leave.

As Buffy walked out, Faith hung back, waiting to see the blonde Slayer disappear down the hallway before turning around to see Giles' arched eyebrows.

"There's something I think I should tell you guys, I just didn't want to upset Buffy while she was in here," Faith started before plunging into her second lengthy story of the day, retelling not only the true events of the morning that caused her to leave, but her past experiences with her dreams as well.

When she was done, she stopped moving, realizing that she had been pacing back and forth in the small room. It took Faith a couple of moments to gather herself before she turned to look over at Giles, her gaze quickly flicking at and away from Dawn and Willow- who was still scribbling notes into a notebook at a speed Faith didn't think was possible. Faith allowed a brow to arch in intrigue at the redhead's note taking skills, before her attention shifted to Giles, who spoke quietly, keeping his tone gentle.

"Why didn't you inform us of this before?"

Faith allowed a half-smile to appear before replying, "Remember who you're talkin' to?"

Giles shut his eyes for a moment and nodded almost imperceptibly, "Touché."

Willow sighed; "I need to research these dreams. Can you come back here around 7? By then, I hope we'll have a more comprehensive understanding for what we're doing tomorrow, and then I can fully focus on you. I'll save my questions 'til then, K?"

Faith nodded, remaining silent.

"All right, thanks for telling us. You never know what might end up being important. See you for dinner," Willow smiled warmly as she dismissed Faith.

Faith nodded again and turned to leave. As she got to the door, Dawn piped up, "German?"

Faith smirked before turning to glance back at the younger Summers, "Ja."


	21. Progression Part 3

Oh the apologies for such a belated update! I have had three different outlines and partially written portions of this chapter in a folder since early November. The problem is that college this year is far more hectic than any previous semester. While I have the ideas written down, I do not always have the time to flesh them out in a full-fledged chapter. So I apologize for the long wait. Since I have a long break, I plan on writing at least one other chapter before I go back to school and then God only knows when I'll be able to write up the next chapter.

I want all of the readers to know that I will never abandon a story…I just might take forever to update. Cheers and Happy New Year!

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Faith grinned as she caught the foam basketball Willow tossed her as she collapsed sideways into the stuffed chair inside the study. Giles sat with one leg crossed over a knee on the couch, his glasses hanging between two fingers as he rested his head on the palm of his hand. Dropping the ball to the floor, Faith glanced between the pair as Willow walked past her to shut the door.

"So which version of twenty questions shall I be enjoying as much as a fleet enema tonight?" Faith asked, her eyes locking on Giles as Willow took a seat beside him.

Picking up a heavily written on pad of paper from the coffee table in front of her, Willow clicked on a pen and glanced at her notes, "You said that in the dream, Buffy told you that time was running out and that you had to lay out your cards before it was too late. Now, we didn't get any immediate hits on that from the quick research we did from this morning until now, because we've been focusing on preparing for tomorrow. However, we can start up on that before the meeting later on."

"What might you think the dream meant?" Giles interjected softly, his voice steering the trio's focus onto the reason they were assembled.

Faith resituated herself into the correct way to sit in the chair, "I dunno, B told me about a couple of times she had these dreams with me in them, but I'd have no memory. This time we both remembered. If going on her past experience, I'd say the meaning had to do with the upcoming apocalypse," Faith shrugged, slouching into a more comfortable position in the chair.

"Do you think it might have had anything to do with your relationship with her?" The question was asked softly, yet Faith felt a chill shoot through her, the question suddenly making her worried.

"I don't… know. It's possible," Faith replied, avoiding looking at Giles as she spoke.

Seeing Giles shift in the corner of her eye, Faith glanced back over, hoping he would try a different tack.

"Why don't we start form the beginning? The first time you had a prophetic dream of some sort," Giles leaned forward as he uncrossed his legs and pressed his elbows into the tops of his knees.

_Oh joy, just when I thought this wouldn't be difficult_, Faith shook her head from her musings and straighten up slightly in her seat, "Well, the first one I really remember, and didn't just have a sense of déjà vu from had to be about a month after I left you guys four years ago. I had chilled at Angel's for about a week and had done a whole journey walk with the Powers That Be about what I could do with my life as a fucked up champion. They told me I would know where to go to help people- which turned out to be the dreams- but the down side was that I would learn about it in a way that matched my life and actions. Kinda like the supernatural karma of Big A getting a soul to suffer for the evil he had done so that he could turn into a champion of the White Hats. I get this karmic slayer assistance that keeps me awake all night. Anyway, I had left LA to head up to Canada, just as a stepping stone- get out of the country where I knew all of the champions," Faith stopped for a moment, her eyes shutting. Turning her head to look out of the window behind Willow's desk Faith began again, "And that was when I had my first slayer nightmare."

"Nightmare?" Willow interjected.

"Buffy gets dreams. I get nightmares. Matches the person, don'tcha think?" Faith shot out, feeling the frustration building up.

"Faith," Giles began, rubbing his eyes before finally putting his glasses on, "Why the Powers do what they do is not always cut and dry, but I think there are at least two journals by two different Watchers who mentioned how their Slayers had more distressing and bleak dreams, rather than the more…normal prophetic dreams that the others received."

"Were those girls living such stellar lives like me?" Faith inquired, the sarcastic tone etched throughout the question.

Giles closed his eyes, as if willing tranquility from the Dark Slayer, "I'm not fully sure, I will look it up later and confirm it."

"All right, so they gave you slayer nightmares," Willow smoothed over, trying to move the conversation forward, "What were they about, or what did they do to you?"

Faith eyed Willow for a moment before sighing and beginning the long story of just how much her nightmares had affected her over the last four years.

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"…and then they gave me a party hat," Faith finished, a grin breaking out on her face after the somber mood of the last hour and a half slowly ebbed from the only comedic story that had any relation to her dreams.

Willow sat, pen scribbling, as she attempted to maintain a straight face. However, Faith laughed out loud at how quickly that failed when the witch looked over at Giles, and squeaked out a laugh. Giles, for his part, sat, mouth agape, a dumbfounded look on his face, as if not quite sure whether what Faith had told him had any true correlation with everything else she had said. The group was silent, processing, and the lighthearted moment was overshadowed by the rough edged and dark tales which Faith had weaved for her audience.

"You said you have been waking up periodically since you first came here, from a dream that you could not remember?" Giles guided the group back as he regained his composure and sat back in his seat.

Faith nodded, "Yeah, it was odd. I would jolt awake and just… nothing. Not even a trace feeling of worry or anguish or fear would remain. I always was just left wondering why I woke up. I didn't think it was a problem, because I never remembered anything disturbing or had a bad feeling- which usually are two big characteristics for my dreams. I didn't think before that my lack of remembering despite being woken the same way as with the regular nightmares meant that it could be the same thing regardless of remembering."

"It might be because of all of the magicks we have protecting this house," Willow mused, glancing over at Giles.

"It can't be. Buffy has still had dreams here regardless of how much protection we have. The Slayer dreams transcend all magicks, except that which created them," Giles shook his head, "It must be something else."

"Giles, I've had some pretty horrific dreams, to which my storytelling barely describes the Dolby Digital and Surround Sound feeling of my experiencing any given dream. I've woken up screaming, crying, wishing I was blind and on the rare occasion, dead. If I've seen things like that, why would I suddenly be blocking them out?"

Faith glanced over at Willow, who merely turned to Giles. Shaking his head, Giles replied, "I wish I knew. I'll start researching that tonight as well."

"I could run this by Alice, our adult psychologist. Maybe she could figure something out by coming from a different angle than we do," Willow proposed, glancing between the pair.

"No. No fucking way, Red," Faith dismissed angrily, "I don't get my head shrunk unless it's a penitentiary requirement."

Giles bridged his fingers together and rested his chin on them before responding, "Then how do you suggest we proceed?"

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It had taken Willow and Andrew about four hours on Friday after Faith had first spoke to the small group when she initially got back to the mansion to triangulate a rough estimate of where the Kartuk demons had held Harrison Beatman captive. Faith's previous evening's conversation with Willow and Giles had left her frustrated as they used rationality to get her to agree to talk with the Slayer psychologist. Mixing that with her focus on revenge for the Kartuk's attack on Buffy and the desire to land a critical blow before the apocalypse would begin was causing Faith's personality to shift back to when she was younger and out of control. Faith felt the itch to jump onto her bike while Willow was giving out instructions in the garage before they all left which caused her foot to start tapping. As the group began to climb into the two vehicles, Kennedy came over to Faith and grasped her arm. Turning Faith looked a question at the younger Slayer.

"Are you okay?" Kennedy asked, her eyes searching the taller woman's.

Faith allowed a crease to appear at the corner of her eyes, "Yeah, just…"

"Tense? Impatient? Desperately in need of a good fuck?" Kennedy supplied, her gaze flicking to Buffy, who was currently tossing a duffel bag into the back of the SUV.

Faith's gaze followed Kennedy's and dropped to the curve where the blonde Slayer's thigh met the bottom of her ass, _God._ Turning back to Kennedy, she saw the knowing grin, "Tell me it's not that obvious."

"Tell me you're gonna do something soon. I mean, neither of you are nuns, and you're dancing around each other like it would be bad if you just sealed the deal," Kennedy stopped as Faith shifted her stance, "Look, I've seen the way she watches you when you're being oblivious. She wants it, and I _know_ you want it. Hell, from the stories you've told me, and from what I know, you used to hit that shit up like it was your job. So just go all in girl, what have you got to lose?"

As Kennedy grinned and walked away, Faith moved to her bike and swung her leg over it. Holding a different, dark gray helmet with the Chinese symbol for "faith" in black on the back of it between her hands, Faith looked over at the SUV where Buffy sat behind the wheel. As their eyes locked, Faith swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat, _everything._ Pulling the helmet on, careful not to screw up the ponytail that secured her hair, Faith pressed a small button on the underside of the helmet near her throat as she flicked the visor down. Instantly the murmur of chatter entered her ear inside the helmet.

"Can everyone hear me?" Buffy's voice cut through, the sound quiet.

"Loud and clear in the cab," Kennedy's voice replied, also quietly, and Faith turned her helmeted head to the truck next to her before speaking, "Can you turn up the volume a little? You guys are too quiet. I won't hear you on the road."

"How's this?" Buffy replied, Faith catching her movement in the SUV as she adjusted the volume.

"Better, are we good?" Faith asked, turning the helmet to both vehicles.

"All set," Kennedy commented, "Let's get this bitch on the road."

"Faith, you're on point. For most of the drive, we'll be going the same way, so the chatter will be minimal until the end," Buffy informed Faith as the brunette hopped and kick-started her motorcycle.

Squealing the tires, Faith spun a quick ninety degree turn to face the front exit of the garage.

"Such a lesbian," Kennedy barked into her ear as Faith drove down the driveway.

"You should talk, back there in your red truck," Faith shot back, "Now, am I gonna hafta deal with you the whole drive?"

"Nah, just thought I'd say it now," Kennedy laughed out, "Let's vamos!"

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It was relatively quiet for the majority of the drive, and Faith allowed her brain to jump around. From the current situation, to her dreams, to the lack of finish occurring in hers and Buffy's relationship, Faith's brain was anywhere but on the road. When Buffy's voice suddenly cut through to her, Faith jumped slightly on her bike, jolted by being brought back to the present.

"Will says to take the next exit."

Faith turned her head to glance over her shoulder and switched lanes as the exit approached. It dumped onto a road in one direction and Faith, after yielding, sped up. Faith counted two major intersections before they entered into a less populated area. Passing roads and houses took longer as the country began to swallow the road and civilization dropped away.

"The next road on your right is the one we want. The park entrance will be a few miles up on your left. Try to find an unobtrusive parking spot for us," Buffy informed her.

"Gotcha B," Faith replied as she decelerated into the right turn, "Someday you gotta tell me where ya learned such big words."

"Save it for the demons, Faith," Kennedy cut through suddenly, her voice laced with mirth.

"Oh like that ever stopped them before," Dawn commented, causing Faith to grin at the interplay between the vehicles.

Turning left into the park, Faith slowed in order to reduce the amount of noise her bike gave off to remain as low-key as possible. Parking in a secondary -and almost completely empty- parking lot, Faith dismounted and pulled her helmet off as the SUV shifted into park on one side of her while Kennedy's truck came to a halt on the other side- framing the least protected vehicle perfectly. Placing her helmet on the seat of her Ducati, Faith watched both vehicles empty out. As she adjusted her ponytail more securely, Buffy, Xander, Willow, Kennedy, Dawn, Sandra and Tracy moved to stand in a small huddle with her, hiding as best as they could between the two vehicles. Leaning against the side of the SUV, Faith crossed her arms, waiting for the "pump up" speech to start.

"Okay, Sandra and Will, you guys'll be with me on the right flank. Trey will be with you, Faith, on the left flank. Xander, you hang back with Ken and Dawn, keep the swords sheathed and crossbows as hidden as you can while we make sure the open areas are clear for you. Everyone has an earpiece- so stay in contact- I don't want anything going wrong with this," Buffy nodded at Faith, "Keep weapons shouldered and concealed until we're far enough into the woods so that we can call as little attention to ourselves as possible. Now, Will said we won't be within earshot of any trails, but I still want this kept as quiet as possible."

"Thank God this is a recreational park," Faith commented as the back of the SUV was opened and Buffy began handing out weapons. As a broad sword was handed to Xander, she continued, "I don't know how we'd explain ourselves at the visitor's center if it wasn't."

Xander grinned at her, and Faith felt the mood lighten, "Imagine us trying to go through customs, never mind a visitor's center."

"Let's not, shall we?" Willow interjected curtly as she swung a messenger bag with a small axe sticking out, over her head.

The mood shifted back to business as the group recalled the story of Willow and Kennedy being detained in LAX after coming back from Brazil where they were almost shipped off to the FBI for interrogation.

"Well, next time I won't bring an ancient Peruvian sacrificial knife in my backpack," Kennedy murmured, her tone conveying her dislike of the incident.

Faith scuffed her toe on the ground for a moment before sighing in an attempt to set herself, "C'mon, let's motor."

Buffy nodded, and the pair moved forward with Willow, Tracy and Sandra moving like a group of friends out for a hike, only their watchful gazes exposing their ulterior motive. Spreading out slightly, Faith noticed that there were only a few people with a direct line of sight to them, and they were distracted. _Let's hope they stay that way_, Faith thought, as Buffy gestured for Xander, Dawn and Kennedy to go into the trail entrance from where she stood. Faith kept a vigilant eye on the oblivious hikers who appeared to be out on an early spring picnic as Xander and the others passed her. Tracy, Sandra and Willow moved in a second wave after them, followed quickly by Buffy while Faith took up the rear, glancing around one last time before entering the woods.

"Now, we follow this trail until we're a little more than a third of the way around the lake," Willow began as the group reassembled and started their hike along the trail, "Then we'll be far from any people, and facing the woods that run parallel to the utility road that Faith told us about."

"What's the closest civilized area once there?" Xander asked as he handed out three short swords before adjusting the crossbow strap across his chest.

"Well, aside from the almost vacant park, there is an equally vacant campsite almost four miles southeast of where we'll be," Willow answered.

"So we're on our own," Tracy concluded.

"Trey, we're quite capable as a group, and it's better that there won't be any innocents that could possibly get in harm's way," Buffy rebuffed.

The group fell silent a while, the hike getting the better of them. Eventually, Sandra piped up, "So why aren't Rona and Vi with us?"

"They've got term papers due early," Dawn replied as she hopped over a fallen branch.

"Oh," Sandra nodded, then, "Why are you here then?"

"I don't have any due until the end of the semester," Dawn answered, shrugging, "How long is this hike of ours anyway?"

Faith glanced back at Dawn before making eye contact with Buffy, "About 45 minutes until we reach the utility road, and then another 45 'til the barrier markers."

"Wow, day trip," Sandra commented, deadpanning, "Too bad I didn't pack my bathing suit."

"Are you kidding? We wouldn't get any sort of decent tan in these woods," Kennedy scoffed sarcastically.

As the rest of the group bickered congenially, Faith blocked them out, her mind focusing on maintaining control on herself so that she wouldn't rush into the hideout the moment she saw it.

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Faith stood off to the right, Tracy a few feet from her, their attention locked on Willow, who held a yellow candle, murmuring an incantation under her breath, her eyes fused on the pile of rocks Faith pointed out to her. Buffy and Sandra stood a similar distance away from Willow on her left, with Kennedy, Xander and Dawn keeping further back, completing an arc around the witch. A soft wind blew through the forest after a moment, causing the candle to go out, despite the fact that none of the trees or plants moved with it.

"Okay, this is officially becoming a bit too much Blair Witch for me," Dawn commented, adjusting the short sword in her grasp, "Faith's whole Robert Ludlum marking skills were cool, but this just freaks me out."

"Check out Dawn, queen of all books about Jason Bourne," Sandra commended, "Glad you didn't make a movie connection for once, considering the present group's pop culture knowledge."

"Hey, we know books!" Xander cut in playfully, only to be silenced by Willow.

"Quiet," Willow's voice was low. After making sure everyone was back to being serious, Willow continued, her voice normal and more relaxed, "The barrier is down. They left a while ago. However, there are traces of the magicks used here. I'll try to conjure a way of containing it so that I can study it, and possibly help us find out where to go from here. You guys can check the place out; but I doubt you'll find anything that didn't die at least a month ago."

Faith looked at Buffy, who nodded at her, and moved past Willow and the barrier markers, her eyes watchful despite Willow telling her not to worry. Keeping the knife in her hand down, Faith circled one way while Buffy mirrored her in the other direction. When they met at what appeared to be the only visible entrance, Buffy lifted her hand and motioned for Tracy and Sandra to follow. With the other Slayers at their backs, Buffy took the flashlight that Sandra offered her and moved into the entrance, Faith right behind her. The initial entranceway was small and emptied into a larger room where straw and leaves matted the floor. Pieces of wood lay scattered, some appearing as makeshift seats, while others as floor level tables of some sort. Swinging the flashlight around, Buffy and Faith saw three more tunnels branch off from the room.

"Tunnel number 1 it is," Faith murmured as Buffy approached the tunnel on the left.

"You guys stay here, I don't want to forget which tunnel the exit is at," Buffy turned and looked back.

Static in her earpiece told Faith that someone outside was starting to speak, "Anything in there?"

Recognizing Willow's voice, Faith replied, "Nothing yet. Everything is makeshift, set up like a hive."

Buffy glanced over her shoulder at Faith before continuing down the tunnel. It also emptied into a large cavernous room, but something was different about it.

"I smell blood," Faith whispered as Buffy came to stop in front of her.

"Me too, demon."

"Yeah."

"Medical area?" Buffy looked back at Faith, who was busy turning a wooden cot over with her foot.

Nodding, Faith took the light from Buffy and exited, this time in the lead. When they came back to main room, Faith immediately hung a left and entered the middle tunnel. It only took a few minutes before it dead-ended into a series of cuts in the walls that looked like dirt beds with leaves and branches littering the area. Handing the flashlight back to Buffy, Faith followed her out in silence. The third tunnel emptied into another wide room; this time however, the room reeked of human decay.

"I think we found where Harrison was held captive," Buffy supplied, lifting a hand to her nose.

"Sandra, come down the far right tunnel, we need your expertise," Faith called out, her earpiece receiving Sandra's clipped acknowledgment.

Glancing around with the flashlight, various body parts and a corpse were suddenly lit up in a corner. When Sandra came in, a second flashlight in hand, Faith saw her gaze drop to the floor.

"Bugger," Sandra swore, moving past the pair to crouch in front of the corpse, "Move your torch over around my right, could you?"

Buffy immediately moved, her light giving Sandra as much assistance as possible.

"These remains appear no less than three weeks old. The other body parts here are older however. I'll need to take these out and study them more fully to tell you anything else," Sandra informed the pair.

Buffy nodded once, "You call the shots, this place is clean as far as Faith and I could tell."

"Willow? Can you hear me?" Sandra spoke, her eyes following her flashlight as she checked the rest of the room.

"Yeah, what's up? You guys found bodies?" Willow asked back.

"Parts. I need you, Ken and Xander to come down here to help me bag, tag and move the remains out," Sandra informed her.

As the three woman moved around to see if there were any more remains, they heard Xander ask timidly from outside, "Is this payback for the wine spill at your parents?"

Sandra came to a stop and turned, her eyes narrowing on the other two Slayers, "What wine spill?"

With the continuing silence from Xander's end, Buffy and Faith shared a knowing grin, _open mouth, insert foot Xand._

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"Toss me one," Kennedy called out as she entered the kitchen, where Faith had just pulled a can of Sprite from the fridge.

Glancing over the top of the door, Faith pulled another can out and tossed it to the other woman, who was leaning back against the counter. The group had pulled in about an hour ago, and Faith, with sundown almost three hours away, had nothing to focus on aside from the thoughts Kennedy had put into her head at eight that morning. Leaning back against the opposite counter, Faith cracked open her can, and eyed her friend carefully.

Kennedy watched her back before a grin broke out on her face, "My God, I really had an effect on you this morning!"

Faith broke the eye contact and shook her head, "No Ken, it's not that…"

"Like hell it is. I know you, girl. Remember back when we used to spend all the spare time post-Sunnydale's implosion hangin'?" Kennedy asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Faith sipped her drink and nodded, "Yeah, yeah. My brain's scattered today."

"Got a lot on the poor thing?" Kennedy pouted, mocking Faith.

"Fuck you," Faith shot back, grinning.

"Ask Buffy first," Kennedy retorted before exiting the room laughing.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So do we have any progress on the double front back at the mansion?" Vi asked as she, Rona, Buffy and Faith walked through one of the larger nearby cemeteries that evening.

"Willow's holed herself up in her study, allowing only Dawn and Andrew to pop in on her magicks research. So far she hasn't made the house explode. That's progress if I ever saw it," Faith replied dryly as she glanced to her right into the shadows beside a mausoleum.

"And Sandra has equally holed herself up in the Trauma room…and no one's attempting to bust in on the wondrously decaying flesh she's up to her elbows in down there. We won't know the full story on the remains for another week because she has to bring all of her samples to the lab, which takes time to process," Buffy finished.

"Ick," Rona shuddered, "I don't see the joy in chillin' with decaying bits."

"You're a Slayer, Rona…Vamps _are_ decaying bits," Vi reasoned, rolling her eyes.

"There's a difference," Rona argued before coming to a halt.

The group stopped, all eyes on Rona, who cocked her head in a motion to follow her as she headed to her left. Another mausoleum's door hung open, grabbing the group's attention. Halting outside, Buffy gestured to Rona and Faith to follow her in, leaving Vi to stand guard in case of a trap. Entering quietly, the unmistakable sound of a growl reached Faith's ears, causing her to duck and roll on instinct as a vampire swiped at the spot she had just vacated. Spinning around, Faith kicked up her leg into the vampire's knee, causing him to drop. The sounds of fighting and multiple vampires in the mausoleum amplified Faith's adrenaline rush as she grabbed her current attacker around the cuff of his collar and threw him around behind her, knocking down two other vampires in the process. The sound of two vamps biting the dust made it to Faith's ears as she advanced on the trio scrambling up in front of her. Spinning a kick in one's jaw, Faith kneed the second in the face before focusing on the third, who had stood up.

Landing a punch to his jaw, the vamp countered with his own that sent Faith back into Rona. Righting themselves, they moved away and back to their respective vampires. Vaulting off of the wall, Faith landed a kick to the vamp's face, and upon landing, spun again to slam another foot into his shoulder, sending him reeling into another vampire. Snarling, he came barreling back, giving Faith the ability to do a leg sweep, and stake him the moment he hit the ground. No sooner had her first slay of the night been dusted when another vampire grabbed her around the throat and pulled her up and back. Grunting loudly, Faith pushed them backwards until they hit a wall, causing the vamp to snarl. Whipping her head back, the sickening sound of one skull hitting another and the other ricocheting off of the wall was accompanied by the howl of pain from her attacker. Slamming a free arm down on the vamp's wrist, Faith heard bone crack as she broke the choke hold and spun, shoving the vamp against the wall before plunging her stake home. Silence followed the scream of the vampire's dusting, and Faith rubbed her neck as she turned around to look at the other two women. Glancing at the pair, the sudden sound of another vampire dusting outside the mausoleum caused the three of them to run back out, only to see Vi pocketing her stake.

"What, you guys think you would get all the action?" Vi asked, grinning.

"Who's hungry?" Faith asked to a chorus of agreement. Catching Buffy's eye, Faith winked, "Just hungry?"

Buffy allowed a playful smile to flash across her face as the other two women moved ahead of them, chattering quietly about their play-by-plays.

"Let's just say I want more than a non-fat yogurt," Buffy answered with a glint in her eye.

Faith swallowed and looked away, her thoughts darkening with lust, _maybe Ken was right. Maybe I should just go all in_.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The rest of the patrol turned out to be a dud, leaving the four women edgy as they got back into the SUV. The car ride home was quiet, with Rona and Vi talking about their paper topics before thanking Buffy for dropping them off at the second house. Faith and Buffy remained silent the rest of the car ride back, the music on the radio the only thing making any noise.

_What is there to lose?_ Faith thought as they exited the SUV. Opening the door to the mansion, Faith allowed Buffy to enter first. As the blonde took off her coat, Faith shut the door and slipped out of her own, hanging it on the coat hook closest to the bathroom door. Buffy had waited for her, and when Faith was done, turned and started to walk back towards the hallway, but Faith stopped her.

"Not so fast," Faith called out, her tone conveying far more than her words.

Grabbing Buffy by her bicep, Faith pulled her back towards her and spun her until they had turned 180 degrees. Pushing Buffy back into the wall beside the few coats that were hung up, Faith planted her feet to keep Buffy where she wanted her. With Kennedy suddenly banging the fact home that she and Buffy were at a crux, and knowing how long she had gone without sex, _solo sex notwithstanding_, Faith had been feeling a strong urge to just grab the blonde all day and shove her against a wall, having her way with her. Considering the day they had had, this urge had been left to smolder even longer, and now, Faith was tired of waiting, _waiting became old a long time ago_.

Buffy asked no questions, her eyes had widened and her mouth had opened in a mixture of anticipation and fear at the initial assault. Moving in closer, Faith felt the personal space melt away, and savored watching Buffy's rapid breathing as her chest moved up and down, the fabric of her shirt tightening just the smallest bit around her bust with each inhale, and Faith was mesmerized. She almost forgot the reason she had yanked the blonde back as they had reentered the house, but when Buffy shifted her hand up to grasp Faith's elbow gently, the movement jarred Faith back to her plan, _not much of a plan, really_. Leaning in, Faith brushed their noses, trying to build up the moment if even the tiniest bit more. Feeling the sigh of warm breath escape from the shorter woman's mouth, Faith opened her eyes to see that the blonde had already given in to the sensations, her eyes closed, enjoying the minute skin contact.

Part of the reason Faith wanted to enjoy this so much was because of the risk that someone might walk back down the hall. The idea that they might be caught in the act made Faith even more turned on- not that she was an exhibitionist when it came to the games of the bed (or couch, or floor, and occasionally the wall) - but rather that she could wind Buffy up so much that the generally uptight and self-conscious woman couldn't give a flying fuck if the Pope walked in the garage door next to them. Not wanting to alter the moment by speaking, Faith lifted a hand and traced Buffy's jaw line gently with a finger, soaking in the image. As her hand dropped to the crucifix adorned neck, Faith turned her palm away from Buffy's body, and let her knuckles trail down between the blonde's breasts to catch on the belt buckle far below.

Leaning in again, Faith felt the heat radiating off of the other woman's body, and couldn't help a small smile. Lifting her other hand to trail up Buffy's neck and tangle in the loose hair at the nape of her neck, Faith finally succumbed and captured the parted lips before her. A small groan accompanied the sudden frenzy of desire in the kiss from Buffy, who lifted the hand resting at Faith's elbow to grasp the back of Faith's neck, holding her in place. Pressing in, Faith felt the all-too familiar jolt when her breasts pressed against Buffy's. Sighing roughly, Faith turned her head for wider access to Buffy's mouth, her tongue slipping easily into the willing blonde's mouth, tracing the familiar ridges and crevices when not battling the tongue residing there.

Faintly, Faith heard someone approach, and the stiffening in Buffy's body told her that the other Chosen One was just as aware as she that they were soon to be discovered. Deciding that she didn't give a rat's ass about someone walking around the corner to see the pair of them there, Faith focused on reconfiguring Buffy's current priorities. Dropping the hand from the blonde locks, Faith broke the kiss and moved down to a sensitive spot on Buffy's neck while her now free hand latched onto a breast. Squeezing enough to grab the blonde's attention, Faith bit down gently on the scar tissue of one of the bite marks on Buffy's neck, eliciting a sharp gasp from the Slayer, who arched her body spasmodically into the Dark Slayer's body. Countering the arch, Faith ground her body down into the shorter woman's, the hand resting on Buffy's belt buckle quickly making fast work of undoing the restraining device. The soft sounds of receding footsteps brought a grin to Faith's face as she licked the flushed bite mark with the tip of her tongue.

Leaving a warm, wet trail up to the shell of Buffy's ear, Faith licked the edge before biting gently on the lobe- careful not to hurt either herself or Buffy by hitting a piercing. Tugging gently on the lobe, Faith freed the button on the blonde's jeans, her thumb and forefinger yanking the zipper down the short distance it could move. Moving her lips to Buffy's jaw, Faith left a trail of quick kisses along it before finally returning to Buffy's lips, and was met with an animalistic groan when she slipped her hand into Buffy's pants and cupped the blonde's heated mound. Groaning, Faith opened her eyes when Buffy broke the kiss. Lust-hazed eyes were watching her, the beginnings of worry starting to appear in them.

"Faith, what are you doing?" Buffy asked, her voice a hoarse whisper.

Bracing her thigh behind her hand, Faith pushed into Buffy, her hand shifting ever so slightly, pulling the thin barrier of panties taut. Tilting her head, Faith watched as Buffy's eyes fluttered shut, a shudder passing through her. Leaning into Buffy's ear, Faith's lips tickled the edge as she whispered her reply.

"Want, take have, B," The sudden gasp of breath was all Faith needed to hear to know that Buffy understood the situation, "Tell me no now, and I stop. Otherwise…" Faith ground against the blonde again, the tip of her pinkie slipping under the thin fabric, dipping into the wet folds just a fraction.

"We can't here," Buffy's voice pitched around as she tried to maintain some control over her vocal chords from the teasing onslaught Faith was giving her.

"It's your house, B. Do what you want, where you want," Faith reasoned coolly.

"Not when there are children as young as eight running around," Buffy countered, swallowing audibly.

Faith sighed as she slowly pulled her hand from Buffy's pants. Yanking up the zipper, Faith felt her frustrations build up again. Glancing at Buffy, Faith saw that the blonde was aware of Faith's aggravation.

"I'm not saying no, Faith. I'm saying I want this private. Just us. Closed doors," Buffy began. Faith nodded silently and began to pull away, too turned on to really listen, but Buffy grabbed her and pulled her flush to her body. Leaning in, the older woman whispered into the brunette's ear, "If you're gonna take me against a wall, I'd much rather not be worrying about whether Lynn might walk in on it, and rather focusing on how your fingers feel inside me."

With that food for thought, Buffy licked the edge of Faith's ear, sending an immediate shudder down the brunette's back. Grabbing Buffy's arms, Faith pushed the other woman back against the wall. Leaning forward, Faith gave her a searing kiss before pulling away. Moving out of both of their personal spaces, Faith allowed an impish grin to spread across her features as Buffy regained her focus, "That's to remember what you said, because I'll hold you to it."

With that, Faith turned and left the blonde, her Slayer hearing just picking up on Buffy saying huskily under her breath, "Like I'd ever forget."

Turning, Faith winked back at Buffy to let her know she'd heard the blonde before continuing out of sight down the hall. As she climbed the stairs to the third floor to go shower, the sound of Kennedy's voice stopped her in her tracks as she passed Willow and Kennedy's bedroom.

"Fuck her yet?"

Turning Faith eyed Kennedy, who was leaning on her doorframe, before suddenly understanding, "Enjoyed what you walked in on?"

"Not much of a voyeur myself," Kennedy replied, shrugging, "Besides, didn't wanna upset the non-exhibitionist of the two of you."

Faith nodded mutely, before stating, "Progress is what moves us forward."

Turning on her heel, Faith smiled as Kennedy called out to her as she walked down the hall, "If that's you being cryptic, you suck at it."

Turning back to face Kennedy as she continued walking backwards, Faith held her arms out, "Who said I was being cryptic?" Grinning she spun back around and left Kennedy muttering something that had a sarcastic bite to it behind her. _No time for subtlety anymore._


	22. Pathos Calling

And I am back, finally. Again, apologies (probably all forthcoming chapters will come paired with an apology)—I am trying to finish this story before the actual timeframe of the story itself catches up with me… which is in May. I hope I finish this before then, seeing as I've dragged this on for over a year (the longest I've ever taken).

* * *

_"And I would be the one/ to hold you down/ kiss you so hard/ I'll take your breath away…" – Possession by Sarah McLachlan_

_"Hold on/ Hold on to yourself/ for this is gonna hurt like hell." - Hold On by Sarah McLachlan_

* * *

The squeak of the faucet and the pounding rush of water into the tub broke the silence as Faith pulled her shirt over her head and unclasped her bra. The jingle of her belt as she undid it and wriggled out of her jeans were an acoustic accompaniment to the water. Leaning back towards the tub, Faith checked the water to make sure of its temperature; satisfied, Faith pulled the lever and the shower shot on. Hooking her thumbs into her panties, Faith finished stripping before turning on the bathroom fan and stepping into the shower. She sighed, closing her eyes as the spray flattened her hair, the water streaming down her body. It was all she could do at the moment to calm herself down after the interlude downstairs mere minutes ago.

Pulling out the shampoo from the rack under the shower head, Faith lathered up her head slowly, zeroing in her focus on the simplest of actions so as not to be overcome with remembering ever sensation from the recent events with Buffy. _Fuck, this is insane,_ Faith thought as she tilted her head back to enter the line of spray, the hot water cascading down, rinsing the shampoo out. Turning around, Faith leaned into the spray, her hands against the wall, bracing her. At the muffled sound of the door shutting, Faith opened her eyes and stared down at the water rushing into the drain. The clinking of a belt buckle was the only sound Faith heard before the curtain was drawn back at the far end, behind her. Shutting her eyes, Faith hung her head as her pulse began to quicken in acknowledgment of the situation.

At the soft touch of a hand on her shoulder blade, Faith jerked, and snapped her eyes open again. Raising her head up, Faith sighed as another hand grasped the curve of her side, the fingers lightly trailing back and forth. Leaning back slightly, Faith's head exited the cone of spray and she felt a soft kiss placed between her shoulder blades. The kisses continued, rising languidly up her spine until her hair was carefully moved over one shoulder, and a single kiss was placed on the nape of her neck.

"Buffy," Faith sighed, her eyes closing at the gentle onslaught she didn't think she was capable of succumbing to.

Just when Faith was becoming used to the gentle touches, Buffy's lips left Faith's back, only to be replaced by the tip of her tongue as it trailed a path up from the middle of her back. Faith gasped and arched her back in response as a gentle nip from the blonde on the back of her neck caused her to spin around. _Oh God,_ Faith gazed at the shorter blonde standing before her in the nude, her hair partially dampened by the spray. Leaning forward, Faith pressed their foreheads together, her eyes downcast at the beautiful form in front of her.

"What, you don't remember what I look like?" Buffy asked, trying to lighten the moment.

Faith shut her eyes, "I'm sorry, I was…"

"In a different place," Buffy finished, lifting a finger to silence the redemptive slayer, "You can't keep punishing yourself for things you've been forgiven for," Buffy continued, cupping Faith's cheek and pulling away to look her in the eyes.

"So I guess I get to be awkward and apologetic instead of smooth and sexy in the shower," Faith gruffly replied, keeping her eyes down, focused on her feet.

Buffy smiled softly, and pulled Faith's face up to make her meet her gaze, "Hey, get it out now, so I can be awkward in the shower later."

"Now why do you think you'd be awkward?" Faith replied with a grin, pulling the blonde backwards with her under the stream of water.

Instead of answering, Buffy lifted her hands to clear her eyes, but Faith grabbed her by the wrists and held her hands down between them before leaning into the spray of water and kissing the blonde. The response was immediate, with Buffy kissing Faith back, rivulets of water running down their faces. Faith felt Buffy grip her sides before turning sideways in the shower without breaking the kiss. Suddenly, out of the spray, Buffy opened her mouth, tracing Faith's bottom lip with her tongue. Leaning in, Faith pressed herself fully against Buffy, pinning her to the wall as she opened her own mouth in response to the blonde's ministrations. Sighing against the shorter woman, Faith succumbed to the moment before moaning softly when the tips of a few fingers grazed the side of her breast. Opening her eyes, Faith pulled back, the abrupt end to the kiss causing Buffy to open her eyes in question.

"Is this it?" Faith asked softly, trying to stay serious when ever fiber of her being was screaming _sex_, "Are we…"

"Shut up and kiss me Faith, worry about the particulars when we get there," Buffy cut her off, pulling the brunette's head towards her own to recapture her lips.

Faith's mind calmed as she felt the initial rush of touches from the blonde segue into a slower, more detailed touch of someone who wanted to enjoy this moment- not just get to the big finish. Smiling knowingly against Buffy's lips, Faith broke the kiss to start a wet trail across the delicate jaw before dropping instantly to the now bared collarbone that she had fantasized about every time the blonde wore anything revealing- _hell, even semi-revealing… sometimes even in a sweatshirt._ Sucking gently, Faith flicked her tongue across the heated, wet flesh, savoring the moment. Her attention was ripped from her ministrations when the delicate dance of fingertips once again brushed her breast. Groaning softly against the other slayer, Faith sighed when the small hand cupped one breast, the thumb tenderly flicking over her hard nipple.

"Like that?" Buffy asked breathlessly, her voice quiet.

Faith grinned, and glanced up into Buffy's half-shut eyes, "Definitely."

From that moment on, it was a blur of sensations, complimented by soft sighs and uninhibited moans. Faith semi-lucidly remembered her hand cupping the back of Buffy's small shoulder before trailing down the smooth back and slipping around to let her thumb catch on a jutting hip bone. She remembered Buffy's lips skimming along her clavicle, nipping her shoulder gently, producing a guttural growl from the dark slayer. In response, the blonde lifted her mouth up and tugged on a tender earlobe before shifting to place a soft kiss on the brunette's jaw line and finally dropping again to the top of her breast. She remembered Buffy's thigh between her legs, the pressure steady and unwavering until their hips rocked in unison, eliciting a warm groan of pleasure from both women. She remembered her hand leaving the jutting hip bone and dancing a path up to a taut stomach; allowing her fingers to delicately circle the shorter woman's belly button teasingly before descending down into soaked curls. She remembered the anticipation, how they both held their breath, the tension ebbing suddenly when Buffy threw her head back, her eyes fluttering shut as Faith slipped a finger inside, her thumb flicking over her swollen clit, beginning the torturous rhythm that would lead to the final crescendo.

From that moment on, it was even less that semi-lucid. Too caught up in the feelings of the moment, the only distinct thing Faith could recall was that Buffy was definitely a fast learner. The pair collapsed in a heap at the bottom of the shower, which had begun to turn tepid. Goosebumps rose on the pair's skin and with a sidelong glance at the blonde, Faith shut off the water and slowly drew the curtain back. Standing up on shaky legs, Faith exited the shower and grabbed both hers and Buffy's towels from the rack. The blonde had curled up and wrapped her arms around her legs, the cold getting to her. Wrapping her towel around herself, Faith crouched down outside the tub, a lopsided smile on her face, and held out the towel to the other woman. Buffy eyed Faith serenely for a moment before moving into the towel and stood up.

Exiting the bathroom, Buffy leaned into Faith as they made their way towards the bed; _I think I'm falling in love with you_, Faith thought, her arm wrapped tightly around the shorter woman. It was as if all of the tension that had been building had suddenly left the room, all of the innuendos were no longer necessary, and the sexual comments had been left at the door. In other words, most of Faith's personality around the blonde was stripped away, leaving a far more serious and loving person standing next to her as they approached the bed.

Stopping, Buffy turned to look Faith in the eyes, "That was…amazing."

Faith smiled gently, "Yeah," Leaning in, Faith kissed the blonde softly, before pulling away to speak, "Worth the wait?"

Buffy grinned devilishly, "Well…that's debatable."

Faith's jaw dropped, but before she could make a comment back, the blonde had pressed her body fully against her, the towel dropping to the floor, and Faith felt herself falling to the bed with the weight of the blonde propelling them down.

* * *

Faith awoke to the sunlight streaming in the patio door, causing the bed to be awash in the morning light. Blinking, Faith began to remember the events of the night before, and a soft smile spread out across her face. Long into the early hours of the morning, Faith and Buffy had been learning every curve and crevice of each others' bodies, each time moving even more methodically and slowly, mapping out the sensitive areas to remember in the future. Now, Buffy lay curled against her body, the honeysuckle aroma of her hair reaching Faith's nose as the blonde's head rested on the top curve of her breasts. The sheets were in tangles around them, for the most part pulled from their restrictive confines when they were yanked around during the night. Two of the four pillows had survived the tumult, one on which Faith slept on, the other perched delicately on the end of the bed, as if ready to fall off at any moment. The other two were on the floor next to Faith's side of the bed, a neglected and unwanted look about them. The towels were, if Faith remembered correctly, most likely on the floor on Buffy's side of the bed in a wet heap.

Closing her eyes to the serenity of the moment, Faith breathed in the mixture of warm scents made up of Buffy's hair, her own shampoo, and the undeniable scent of their lovemaking. Remembering back to the night, Faith smiled again, thinking how the aroused scent of Buffy had drawn her in, tasting her being the only thing better. Her thoughts scattered at the sound of a faint knock at the door. Lifting her head, Faith listened, and heard soft footsteps receding. Carefully extricating herself from the blonde's slumbering embrace, Faith wrapped a rarely used bathrobe around her naked form and padded to the door. Opening it a crack, Faith saw a tray of food on the floor outside. Bringing in the tray, Faith placed it on the end of the bed, picking up the note on it. _Enjoy a morning in bed; everything's all taken care of downstairs. –W_. Faith smiled; _Red, you sure can be fantastic sometimes_.

"What you smiling at?" Buffy asked, her voice filled with sleep.

"Hey, I didn't know you'd woken up," Faith replied softly, her grin widening as she looked up at the half-sitting blonde, before answering her question, "It's a note from Red, she's taken care of the morning duties, so we can sleep and eat in. She even cooked."

"Wow, that was nice of her," Buffy sat up, the sheet she'd pulled up during the night to stay warm falling to her waist.

Faith's eyes dropped to drink in the exposed skin, her eyes darkening. Instead of reddening, Buffy's face relaxed into a sultry look in response to Faith's reaction, "You hungry for breakfast or…"

Faith's gaze meet Buffy's as the sentence trailed off. Before she could reply, her stomach growled in hunger. Buffy chuckled quietly, and Faith could only grin, "How about, real food for now, and we see where things go afterwards?"

Buffy smiled up at the rogue slayer as she brought the tray over, "Sounds like a plan."

* * *

A little over a week after Buffy and Faith first slept together, after plenty of teasing from everyone, and several physical threats from the pair in response, the house had returned back to normal. When Kennedy had declared "finally!" in front of the older group, a general chuckle of agreement backed it up and the two women could only grin sheepishly in response. The pair didn't have much else to focus on outside of patrolling and each other that week, so when Sandra strode in the door shortly before dinner over a week later, slapping a folder down on the table where Buffy, Faith, Xander, Willow and Giles were conversing, it was as if the events building up before that night were suddenly brought back onto the front burner.

"Are those the lab results?" Buffy asked hopefully.

"You bet they are," Sandra replied, pulling out a chair beside Xander and plopping down into it.

"So what's the sitch on the remains?" Faith asked, leaning back in her chair.

Pulling the papers from the folder, Sandra flipped through them, and Faith guessed from the lack of reading that Sandra had already looked over them thoroughly at the lab.

"We have a grand total of three different bodily remains there. Of the three lower arms and hands, one is definitely a match to Harrison Beatman. The other two are both Caucasoid females, and most likely, from the same woman. The lower calf and partial foot remains that were found belong to a Mongoloid male, the identity is also unknown. The woman's prints were run through the system, but nothing came up, so she's just a Jane Doe. There isn't much we can do with a foot that would be helpful, we were lucky to get a generic racial idea, never mind gender."

There were a few moments of silence as the group digested this before Buffy spoke, "So does any of this help us?"

Sandra looked at the papers, not really reading them before replying, "Nope."

"Great," Buffy pushed back her chair and stood before pacing a few steps.

"Knowing who those remains were wouldn't have helped us anyway, outside of giving grieving families some semblance of peace," Sandra carefully rationalized, noting Buffy's aggravated state.

Buffy breathed loudly out of her nose and nodded, "I know, I know…it's just that…yeah…"

Faith watched the blonde carefully, knowing the woman's thoughts, which were exactly what Sandra had stated, and yet, the idea of victims in this giant battle between good and evil always hit Buffy in a way that Faith never felt, but in the years since their initial meeting, she had come to understand.

"Willow, was there any progress on that magick containment you've been working on?" Giles asked, his chin perched on his hands on the table, trying to steer the conversation into something more positive.

Willow squirmed in her seat, the spotlight suddenly on her, "Well, yes and no."

Buffy stopped pacing, her hands on her hips, her posture expressing fatigue, and yet she was completely attentive to the redhead. Faith finally dragged her gaze from Buffy and focused on Willow.

"What do you mean?" Xander asked, leaning the side of his head on the palm of his hand as he turned to look at Willow down the table.

"Well, I was able to find out their magick signature, so I can do a generic landscape spell on a map of Cleveland to find if there is a match to that signature somewhere else," Willow explained, glancing around the table.

"You mean, like finding their new hideout?" Faith asked, suddenly leaning forward, crossing her arms on the table.

"Yeah, presuming their shamans stay with or near the rest of the Kartuk, definitely," Willow replied, nodding.

"But?" Buffy interjected softly, catching Willow's attention.

"But the signature itself is very volatile- which suggests that their magicks are the same, if not worse," Willow finished, looking over at Giles, who leaned back in his chair, his features darkening.

"Meaning this battle will be far more difficult, if you're having so much trouble dealing with an old signature," Giles inferred.

Willow nodded, "Yeah, this is gonna be hard. I haven't even found a weakness in the signature yet, and I was hoping for that by now. Then I'd have at least something to help me and the Coven learn to break their magick barriers when we do finally fight. It would give all of you a better chance of taking out the shamans faster, which would make everything easier."

"You would think that after everything we've been through, we would get a break, but no," Xander quipped, shaking his head.

The group fell silent for a few moments before Faith glanced over at Willow, "When do you think you'd be able to tell us where the new hideout is?"

Willow looked over at Faith for a moment before answering, "I'll get the ingredients together after dinner, the spell isn't that complicated, but I would like someone nearby for an anchor. It shouldn't take too long, but it's not easy to do, mostly because of the strength in the signature."

Faith nodded, "Sounds good. Be careful."

Willow smiled tightly, "Thanks."

"When do you meet with Alice?" Giles asked suddenly, and all the attention was refocused on Faith, who shifted in her seat, a frown creasing her features at the mention of her psych meeting.

"Tomorrow at 9," Faith mumbled, "She said for you and Will to meet us at the other mansion around noon."

"Why such a drastic time difference?" Willow asked, her brow furrowed.

Faith sighed, "It's gonna be a complicated meeting, ok? Or do you not remember how entertaining my stories were?"

The remark came out harsher than intended, but Faith was still furious with the fact that she was being forced into this, even if it would help. Willow's gaze dropped to the table to investigate her fingernails, and the rest of the group who were sitting, awkwardly looked away. Only Buffy watched Faith, and the dark slayer felt the heated gaze, knowing the mixture of compassion and affection gracing its features even without looking. _We're in this deep, aren't we?_ Faith thought, finally meeting the blonde woman's gaze with an equally strong look of her own. As if reading her thoughts, Buffy nodded imperceptibly and exited the room, signifying the end of the discussions for now.

* * *

The echo of a taped up fist hitting a weighted leather bag, mixed with the higher pitched grunt as Faith exhaled from the force of the hit, coupled with the added touch of the chains jingling as they swayed were all that Faith's ears heard as she worked out in the barn. As the weather grew warmer, Faith found that she would pry herself away from the mansion for anything that wasn't specifically offered there. Outside of food, a roof in bad weather, clean clothes, and a bed to sleep in, Faith found herself out on her bike, running the trail, or spending her time in the barn, doing various –and occasionally nefarious- activities to kill the time.

Feeling her brain switch into narration as she gripped the bag in her sweaty hands to smooth out it's swing, Faith glanced around, _this place, avoided by all of the Mini-Slayers is quite possibly the only place where I can run my mouth without worrying over whether Lynn heard me or not._ Moving away from the bag to the bench-press along one wall, Faith smirked, _the privacy of this place when T'wanni isn't here…Hell, Buffy and I just found a new use for this bench that has nothing to do with using weights. Good kneeling height, I give it that…_ Lying down on it after checking that the weight was adequate, Faith's grin vanished as she focused on her set.

Exhaling after doing her third set of eight, Faith replaced the bar and sat up, her elbows coming to a rest on her knees as she leaned forward to catch her breath. _And then there were two,_ Faith thought, her eyes noticing a figure standing in the doorway to the barn, the low light from the setting sun outside back-lighting them enough to blot out whoever it was from identification, but Faith could feel her. _You can't really sneak up on me, B._

"Hey," Buffy opened, as she entered the barn and shut the door behind her, cutting out the sun and allowing the florescent lights inside to light her more correctly.

"Hey back," Faith replied, remaining where she was, her eyes fused to the blonde as she moved further inside and ever closer.

Buffy's gaze dropped to the bench Faith was sitting on, and a twitch at the corner of her mouth accompanied an arched eyebrow, yet she said nothing as she came to sit on the accompanying bench next to Faith where the free weights were used.

Faith looked over at Buffy, "What, you think this bench can't be used for what it was made for anymore?"

"Oh no, nothing like that," Buffy replied, her face breaking out into a grin, before adding in a softer, almost lilting voice as she eyed Faith over, "Definitely not."

Faith felt her insides squirm just a bit at the way she was being visually undressed, and swallowed- audibly. Buffy heard the nervous swallow and cocked her head slightly, "Nervous?"

Faith chuckled at that and swung her legs around to face Buffy; _there are a million ways to answer that question, _"Should I be?"

It was Buffy's turn to laugh as she stood suddenly, and began to move away. Faith grabbed her hand however and pulled her back, causing the blonde to fall ungracefully down into her lap. The pair stopped for a moment before both laughing softly. Their noses were almost touching, and yet, Faith didn't want to stop the moment, whatever it was, even for a kiss. Buffy seemed to agree, and the moment became more serious as she lifted a hand, and delicately traced the curved of Faith's cheekbone with the pad of her thumb. Faith's eyes fluttered shut, drinking in the moment, not entirely sure why, until the thought _I love her_ drifted into her head. At the sudden realization- which would later be questioned and picked over - Faith's eyes snapped open, startling Buffy.

In retrospect, the simplicity and gentleness of the situation that produced the realization would prove that it was true, but in this immediate moment, Faith didn't want to believe it just yet, and all of her interior systems began to misfire. Faith awkwardly stood, causing Buffy to almost fall to the floor, but she recovered and stood in front of a clearly shaken Faith.

"What? What is it?" Buffy asked, placing a hand on Faith's shoulder.

Faith jumped at the touch, and Buffy pulled her hand away as if burned, her easily readable face conveying the mixture of pained confusion. Opening her mouth, Faith was about to apologize, but found that the words were evading her. Shutting her mouth in frustration, Faith sighed loudly and moved to get out of the barn as fast as possible, leaving a bewildered and hurt blonde to watch her retreating back.

* * *

Faith would come to look back on her decision to get away from the mansion for the night as one of the worst ideas of her redemptive life- one in which she would unfortunately not be the only person to witness and remember. However, it was her way of freaking out about falling in love- nay her way of freaking out about being in love, which was a whole different game. After driving around the town until well past midnight, Faith finally shut off her engine and dismounted, her eyes glued to the building in front of her.

It was a tried and true way of proving things right- or wrong- and Faith felt the guilt creeping into her body at each step she took towards Club Flair, one of the most well known lesbian clubs in the entire city. She had visited it herself with Kennedy a couple of times, the bar being a far quieter scene than the dance floor. However this time, Faith wasn't looking to dance away her problems, she wanted a drink.

"Johnny D, three of 'em," Faith ordered, after seating herself at the bar.

The music thumped down from the stairwell leading up to the dance floor, and Faith eyed it, but the desire wasn't in her. She tuned out the conversation and hip-hop music emanating from the downstairs speakers around her and did each shot, one right after the other, enjoying the hot burn as the liquid trickled down her throat. Upon waving the bartender down, he gave her a refill and a tight smile.

"You must be able to hold your own, darlin'."

"I like to think so," Faith replied, smirking up at him before he nodded and moved down to another customer.

"This round's on me," A soft voice broke into Faith's thoughts as she ran the tip of her finger around the edge of one of the shot glasses.

Turning, Faith watched a slender, dirty blonde haired woman about her age slide onto the barstool next to her. Her hair was half up, and down in all the right places, complimenting the hooped earrings that glittered in the light. She wore a white tank top with artistic brush strokes of black all over it, and tight fitting jeans that flared out over three-inch black heels. Dragging her eyes back up to meet the woman's eyes, Faith smiled softly.

"That's kind of you, but I'm good."

"Oh I insist," the woman replied, flagging down the bartender to order a shot of some flavor of Smirnoff vodka, "I'm Robyn."

Faith looked over at the outstretched hand, and the tingling of guilt began to creep back up. In defiance of maturity at the moment, Faith smirked playfully and grasped the woman's hand, "Faith."

Another twelve shots of Jack Daniels, and Faith found that reverting to her old self was far easier than acting grown up. It was only when a far-too familiar voice exclaiming her name caused her to pull her mouth away from the salty lips of Ribbon or Bobbi or whatever the fuck her name was. It took several seconds to recognize and understand the seriousness of her situation before she uttered the only word to encapsulate the severe badness of that very moment, "Fuck."

"Do you know Faith?" the long-forgotten name of the dirty-blonde who was currently pressed up against the wall outside the club asked, gesturing to the woman behind Faith.

"What the fuck, Faith? What the…" And Faith dropped her gaze, swallowed the bulge in her throat, and looked back up at her friend.

"Ken…"

"No, you don't get to talk. Not now. Not when I'm so fucking close to ripping you a new one," Kennedy broke in, shaking her head and reaching out to grab Faith's wrist, "I'm sorry; I've got to take my friend home."

"But, wait!" Robyn called out, "Don't you want my number?"

Faith felt her insides clamp at the question and let Kennedy pull her even harder as they turned a corner. The pair moved in a semi-straight line, thanks to Faith's drunkenness, down the street in silence for a couple of blocks, before Faith's eyes widened and she jerked around back towards the bar.

"Oh, no, you're not going back tonight girlfriend," Kennedy yanked back, pulling Faith forward a few more steps.

"But, my bike!" Faith gestured behind them, stumbling to stay in stride with Kennedy.

"I had Sandra take it home. We walked over here after wandering around to most of your common hangouts," Kennedy explained, her voice quiet.

"Did she see…" Faith began, straightening up slightly, as sobriety began its first attempt to break though.

"No," Kennedy replied, her voice still quiet, "When I saw your bike…I just told her to take it home, I had a spare key on my keychain."

"Oh," Faith replied, before a gurgling began in her stomach, "I think I need to vomit."

"Fuck," Kennedy pulled Faith towards the side of the road, and grabbed hair as Faith leaned over quickly and up-chucked her drinks, "God, Faith what the fuck made you do this?"

Faith wiped her face before moving away about ten feet and collapsing onto the curb further away. Kennedy came over and sat beside her.

"Feel better?"

Faith shrugged, before answering, "I don't know why."

Kennedy took in the response, before realizing what she was replying to and shot back, "Bullshit, you always have a motive."

Faith tensed at the term, finding its use in the current situation making her sound like, _a cheater? Because that's what I am…_ Groaning Faith dropped her head into her hands, "It wasn't supposed to happen like this, I wasn't expecting to…"

"What, Faith? What is this about?" Kennedy asked her tone softening, and Faith could tell she wanted to understand.

"I freaked out," Faith began, only to pause at a wave of nausea. After it passed, Faith continued, thankful for Kennedy's silence, "I was with Buffy today, and we were just, happy, and I realized that I loved her."

Faith felt Kennedy tense beside her, knowing the anger building within her at the stupidity of the explanation.

"An I know that's not an excuse, but, I freaked," Shutting her eyes, Faith continued, "I'm never felt like this for anyone, ever. And it just…it scared me. Scares me."

"So," Kennedy began, choosing her words in what Faith knew to be her oh-so careful way, "Your reaction to this realization is to lock lips with the first woman who isn't Buffy?"

"No!" Faith lifted her head and looked at Kennedy, frustrated, "Alcohol was my reaction. The woman was an… an occupational hazard from too many shots. I don't fucking know. She like, sat down and began buying me drinks, which sounded great at the time, because, hey I wanted drinks. I didn't go out with the plan to cheat! Fuck!"

"So you freaked out?" Kennedy began after a few tense moments of silence.

Faith nodded, "Yeah," then, after pausing for a moment, "Are you gonna tell her?"

Kennedy sighed and stood up, pulling Faith with her, "Only if you don't."

"Before or after I tell her I love her?" Faith asked, drunken self-loathing making its way into her brain, _Boy am I fucked_.

Kennedy cast a sidelong glance at Faith, "Fuck if I know. You make up your mind about how much shit you wanna put her through."

* * *

Faith faintly remembered walking up the driveway with Kennedy, but beyond that, things got kind of, blank. Opening her eyes into slits, Faith didn't notice where she was right away. It was only after her eyes adjusted to the darkness broken by the thin strip of light coming from the door in front of her that Faith realized with a groan, that Kennedy had dropped her, with a pillow, blanket, and- upon reaching out and hitting it- a trash can, in Willow's magicks room. _Far away from Buffy_. Unfortunately, this unpleasant sleeping area meant one thing, and Faith suddenly realized how clever Kennedy was.

While the younger girls would go off to school, and most of the others would end up at work or out on errands, Faith- and Kennedy- both knew that today, Buffy was spending at home, and was most likely somewhere in the house where Faith's re-emergence from the basement, never mind her appearance after fleeing the evening before, would be noticed immediately. _Clever girl._

Groaning again, Faith rolled onto her side and sat up, holding her head in her hands. Stumbling into a kneeling position, Faith felt a heavy blanket slip down to the floor, and she crawled awkwardly to the door. Grasping the handle, Faith turned the knob and pulled the door in just enough to let in a crack of light. It was dull, due to the florescent lighting only being half on, but Faith caught sight of a glass of water and a napkin with two pills on it next to the glass. Closing her eyes in gratitude, Faith pulled the door open until it swayed into the wall gently, and leaned her shoulder against the doorframe. Reaching out, Faith picked up the pills and knocked them to the back of her throat before grabbing the water and drinking more than half of it.

It took more than fifteen minutes for Faith to properly fold up the blanket and place both it, and the empty trashcan outside the magicks storeroom's door, before beginning the long journey up the stairwell to what Faith knew would be a brightly lit dining room. _This will not be fun._ Her brain again jumped back to the intelligence of her sister slayer and friend, and then Faith cringed, knowing what she had to tell Buffy. _Fuck._ Sighing, Faith opened the basement door a crack and peered out. Detecting no sounds, Faith opened the door enough to slip out and shut it behind her. Moving as gently and quickly as possible, Faith scurried around the corner and into the hallway. Running down towards the half-bath, Faith heard a pair of bare feet slap on the kitchen tile as she shut the door silently. After taking care of all immediate necessities, Faith turned on the faucet and splashed water on her face before risking a glance into the mirror. The face staring back at her looked ragged, and reminded her of how she looked after falling apart in Angel's arms so many years ago. The guilt of what she had done then caught up with her, and Faith hung her head again as flashes of last night reverberated throughout her brain. _If I could just get upstairs and shower, look mildly normal, have some sort of control over myself before…_ But she didn't finish her train of thought, knowing that no matter what she did, it would still be horrible.

Sliding down against the sink top, Faith wrapped her arms around her knees and felt the first shake in her body. Wrapping her hand over her forehead, Faith let her shoulders shake, feeling the tears track down her cheeks, already mourning the loss of something she hadn't even realized was so important to her. Sitting on the bathroom floor, sniffling quietly, Faith didn't hear the door open, and only knew someone was there when her name was spoken in a worried way, grabbing her attention.

Turning and looking up at the intruder, Faith closed her eyes, _Oh God, Buffy,_ Faith thought, and then, she realized suddenly, that she did love her, it wasn't just her waxing melodrama on a pleasant moment shared between the two of them yesterday afternoon. _It was real._ With that knowledge, Faith swallowed down her fear, and with tear rimmed eyes, asked Buffy to shut the door and sit down.

* * *

To say that she had been through worse emotional ordeals would require Before Redemption and After Redemption labels. In all honesty, Faith wanted say that the hour and a half spent in the bathroom earlier was the worst of her life, but she couldn't fool herself. Her life happened to have far too many horrible experiences. After beginning down the path of atoning for her sins, and trying to be a better person, Faith knew that nothing compared to the pain of telling Buffy. Especially knowing that she loved this woman, who very well might love her back.

It was worse than any mental or physical torture that had ever been visited upon her. For once, Faith didn't know how to ignore it or shut it off. She remembered Angel once telling her to just let the pain of her deeds flow over her, as accepting their existence was one of the first steps to redeeming herself. Right now, Faith wished she could do anything but that, as the guilt and pain of the previous night, mixed with the emotional turmoil of that morning flowed through her like oil, making her feel tainted, and no amount of scrubbing would get rid of all of it. Knowing a phone call to the west coast would be in her future soon, Faith tied her sneakers tight before standing on the deck and starting off at a clipped pace into the trails.

It was mid-afternoon, and after food and water, Faith's hangover receded enough for her to go for a run that she hoped would help her clear her head. As her feet pounded the trodden dirt path, Faith replayed that morning's fiasco over and over in her head, _it could've gone worse._ Buffy had gone mute during the revelation, and Faith feared more for an explosion of fury instead of actually causing the emotional shut down that had occurred. Buffy didn't yell, or hit her, which were both complete 180's from their mixed friend/enemy/ally past. In the moments after Buffy had left the bathroom without so much as a word, Faith realized just how much their life together had changed, and feared the more powerful effect she now had over the other Chosen One. Faith had reigned in her tears when Buffy had sat down, knowing that in this moment, she didn't have the right to do it, it wasn't for her to do. It was worse to watch the single, silent tear slip down Buffy's cheek before she left, her hand on the door knob as she turned back to look down at Faith. Faith had wanted to jump up and cup her cheek, wipe away the tear, tell her another ten times that she was sorry, but she was frozen to her spot, again knowing it was not her right to do that, not now. Not when she had fucked it all up.

Running through the woods, Faith knew that Willow or Dawn would be the person Buffy would accept this from. Most likely Willow, if history was one to prove anything. Which meant one of two things, when Faith ran into Willow privately there would be no verbal threat of physical harm that the younger sister was so skilled at conveying to protect Buffy; instead there would be a silent threat to make things right, or face the protective wrath of the entire core Scooby Gang. Sometimes Faith didn't know which was the bigger threat to her safety- the Scoobies as a collective, or Dawn- and that was scary in its own right.

* * *

Dinner was awkward, as Faith sat to the right of Buffy like she normally did, so as not to pique any interests, but the cool silence that remained between the pair throughout the dinner was noticeable to all present, and Faith silently cursed their awkwardness when clearing the table, when their hands accidently brushed. Faith felt the normal spark that the touch would usually elicit, but this time around it felt tainted somehow, the sexual and arousing reactions the touch usually caused instead felt wrong, and Faith felt her neck burn with shame at the way she had even ruined the simplest of things between the two of them.

After Willow announced for the core group to meet her in her office in an hour, Faith waited for most of the people to disappear off into the house before following Willow into her office, where she figured the neurotic genius would be preparing the setup of the meeting, most likely with post-its, or something of the sort. Smirking at the notion, Faith knocked once on the partially closed door, and upon being called in, entered and shut the door, not even surprised to see a short stack of note cards on the desk in front of the seated redhead.

"Faith," Willow began, and gestured for Faith to take a seat, "What's up?"

Faith couldn't gauge the redhead, knowing that sometimes she was very skilled at playing things close to her chest, and the amount of information that she knew about last night and today could be anywhere between nothing – which was highly unlikely- or everything- which was what Faith was both hoping and dreading was the case.

"I, err, I was wondering what I missed last night at the meeting," Faith began dumbly, searching for anything that wouldn't immediately receive the third degree.

"We didn't have one, once you went off, we just figured it'd be okay to hold off for one more night. Tonight's meeting will be about, well, everything," Willow explained, shrugging.

Faith nodded, "'K," then fell silent, not sure what to say next, then, "I missed Alice's meeting this morning."

"I know, she said to just reschedule for sometime this week," Willow replied calmly, her expression still conveying nothing.

Faith nodded, thankful for small mercies, before sighing and leaning forward on the couch, and put her face in her hands.

"We need to talk," Willow stated coolly, and Faith lifted her eyes above the tips of her fingers, curving her palms around her jaw as her elbows rested on her knees.

Faith watched Willow like this for a moment before nodding and leaned back in the seat, refraining from the comfortable slouch she normally shifted into.

"What do you know?" Faith asked, breaking eye contact and looking out the side window.

"Well, Buffy came into my room earlier, I think after you went out for a run, when I got back, from Alice's with Giles," Willow began, and Faith remembered one of the reasons she fled the mansion was to give Buffy complete access and privacy to seek out her best friend, "Kennedy came upstairs at one point, I felt her, but she must've heard what was going on and retreated back down. She and I talked shortly before dinner, and I got her account of things." _Oh fuck._

"Has Kennedy talked to Buffy yet?" Faith asked, running her hand through her hair.

"Not yet, but I told her that when Buffy did seek her out, to refrain from certain parts," Willow replied, cocking her head to one side as she dropped the pen she was holding onto the desk.

"Such as?" Faith didn't care what was told; just not that she loved the blonde. She had already told Buffy everything that had happened to the best that her drunken memory provided.

Willow was quiet, as if trying to think of how to say the next sentence. Before speaking, she looked up at Faith, and Faith saw a flicker of warmth in them as she asked, "You love her?"

Faith swallowed, and nodded, "Yes," Looking down at her shoes, Faith felt her face redden, "Ken can tell her whatever, just not that, please."

"That's what I told her," Willow replied softly, agreeing, "Can I ask you a question?"

Faith dared a glance up at the witch and nodded mutely.

"Why react that way?"

Closing her eyes slowly, Faith furrowed her brows as guilt hit her again, _fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck_, "Old habit?" She replied rhetorically before shaking her head, "I could explain, but it doesn't matter. There's no excuse worth telling," Faith finished the sentence quietly, forcing Willow to strain to hear her, "I just…I just want to make things right again."

Willow nodded, "It's not like saying sorry once will fix things," The redhead trailed off and looked away, and Faith was struck by a memory of Xander telling her about Oz's exit long ago, "You can't just apologize and expect it to go back to normal. It's never that simple."

"I know," Faith replied, looking out the window again.

"Give her time," Willow continued after falling silent for a bit, "Forgiveness of others is far easier on her than forgiving herself."

Faith nodded before slouching down in her chair, "Can I chill here till the meeting?"

Willow nodded before going back to her notes, and Faith was glad things were at least five by five between her and the blonde's best friend.

* * *

"So what are we doing again?" Britt asked as she, Faith, Kennedy, Tonya and Buffy walked through the forest where Cleveland's Hellmouth hid.

"The map Willow and Xander did that spell on to find where the Kartuk had set up their new base showed that it was in this forest. We just wanna see what the layout is," Buffy explained as she ducked under a low branch.

"Oh," Britt fell silent, then, "So we're not slaying anything?"

Faith smirked, "Not here, no. Recon and research is nine-tenths of this job anyway."

"Seems boring," Tonya commented, gaining a low chuckle from Kennedy.

"I hear ya," Kennedy commented, "But you'll see the importance of this soon enough."

"Quiet," Buffy suddenly cut in, and the group refocused on the original Chosen One.

Glancing at the group, her eyes quickly flicking over and away from Faith, Buffy stated in a low voice, "Through these bushes. Stay out of view, spread out. Do not enter into combat, avoid being noticed. Meet back here in ten minutes."

Faith nodded and then grinned after seeing the suddenly excited looks on the younger girls' faces. _First time is always a rush._

Faith moved opposite Buffy, her normal reaction- they provided the wings of the group- and snuck under some low hanging foliage between a tree that had fallen at an angle onto another tree. Here, she had a clear view of the opening area that a string of huts seemed to make a half-ring around. It was a different set up than the woods up in the park, but considering the apocalypse they were creating, Faith figured the Kartuk weren't too concerned about their normal living habits.

To say the ten minutes were slow was an understatement. Faith's knees had locked up as she half crouched, half kneeled, and all she could ascertain was the layout. Nothing was moving near her. When she made it back to the meeting place, the group convened together and moved as one away from the base. When they exited the woods and popped out into the nearby cemetery, Buffy looked around and asked if anyone saw anything. Kennedy and Britt stated that nothing had moved, Buffy agreeing to the same thing, but Tonya piped up,

"I heard chanting near me, they seemed to have moved from the campsite off to another area out of sight."

"Was it anything you recognized?" Buffy asked, turning towards the younger slayer.

"Sounded demonic. I didn't see anything, really, just heard," Tonya explained, shrugging.

"You see anything?" Buffy suddenly asked Faith, and only Faith and Kennedy noticed the sharpness of the question.

"Nah, it looked like they'd left to do something," Faith explained, looking out towards the cemetery.

"Sounds familiar," Buffy murmured, and Faith stopped in her tracks.

"What the hell did you say?" Faith shot out, anger boiling up suddenly.

For a moment, Buffy looked like she was going to take the bait, but then she sighed, "Nothing."

Reaching forward, Faith grabbed Buffy's arm and turned her towards her, "Maybe you should say something. It'd be better than nothing."

"Guys…" Kennedy cut in uncertainly.

"What do you want me to say Faith? That you hurt me more than I thought you could? Want me to tell you how betrayed and cheated I feel? Will that help you?"

Buffy was practically yelling and Faith stepped back, her own frustrations building, "Yeah, it would! I'd like to know what's going on in your brain, I want to fix this!"

"This isn't something you just flick a switch and reset everything, Faith," Buffy shot back condescendingly.

"I know that!" Faith growled, "I know I fucked up, and I just…" Faith statement was cut off when Tonya yelled as she was slammed into a tall tombstone by a vampire.

Faith suddenly realized their situation as six vampires circled in, and felt her jaw set. Grinding her molars together, Faith focused on the closest vamp, who was grinning, "Lover's quarrel?"

"Fuck you," Faith seethed, dodging a punch and landing a back hand to his face, too angry to focus on the enjoyment of slaying. Spinning the vamp around, Faith shot out a leg and kicked him for all he was worth, sending him flying into another vamp flying through the air.

As the two undead bodies slammed into one another, Faith ran forward and did a leg sweep before dusting him. The sound of the other vamp blowing in the wind caused her to look up and lock eyes with Buffy. The eyes had softened slightly, but the pain was still there. _We always made a good synchronized team._

"Glad you're having a moment, but a lil' help?" Britt called out to the pair, and Faith moved immediately to her aid while sensing Buffy going to help Tonya, who was currently struggling with two vamps.

Grabbing the vamp pinning Britt to the ground, Faith threw her through the air, where she landed with a sickening crunch against the edge of a tombstone, snapping it in half. Helping Britt up, Faith heard Kennedy's vamp dust. Turning towards the female vamp, Faith smirked as she came running forward, and sparing a glance at Britt, spun and landed a roundhouse kick to the vamp's face, sending her stumbling backwards again. Britt moved past Faith as she came out of her spin and landed two uppercuts before an elbow to the vamp's face gave her an opening and slammed the stake home.

Turning around, Faith glanced around and saw Tonya slaying the last vampire, and the group as a whole came back together, assessing the situation.

"Anyone hurt?" Buffy asked, glancing around, this time her gaze held on Faith a bit longer before flicking to Kennedy.

"Yeah," Tonya replied, and Britt nodded too, her hand at her neck.

"What's the damage?" Kennedy asked, looking at the two younger slayers.

"Vamp slashed up my arm when he used that fucking angel on the tombstone as a backboard to throw me into," Tonya grumbled, holding her arm, where blood had soaked through her sleeve.

"The vamp that was on me got a nice graze in," Britt commented, pulled her hand away to show two shallow gashes in her neck, "Thanks for being timely Faith."

Faith grinned, "It's an acquired skill."

"Come on, let's get home," Buffy urged, pushing the two younger woman in front of her, with Kennedy in the lead.

The group walked in silence for a bit, and Buffy and Faith fell back, a tense peace between them.

"I'm sorry," Faith murmured softly, her voice laden with guilt.

Buffy remained silent for a few more steps before replying, "I know. But we're not okay yet."

"Okay," Faith replied meekly, never knowing a time in her past when someone could make her so timid. _I better be in love, cause if I'm not…it would be embarrassing and so not worth it. Gunn and Ken would never let me live it down._


	23. Declaration

A thousand apologies for the extensively delayed update. I also apologize in advance if the chapter comes off as some what off-kilter/more melodramatic than usual. It's the way I'm been thinking of things. I can't rewrite this again, as it has now been envisioned and typed, so, I am left with the scarred remnants of what I had hoped originally was a good idea. It may be disjointed, but that's kind of the point. Let me know if you agree/disagree.

A personal thanks to xXAngel of fireXx for PMing me into me kicking my ass into gear on this chapter.

Also, for You Don't But Thanks Anyway: I don't have much of a secret beyond the amazingness that is the few people who choose to review of the thousands of hits I get per chapter.

* * *

Faith was thumbing through a magazine in the living room, her feet hanging over the edge of the loveseat, when Kennedy walked in, her gaze swinging around before noticing her and coming over. Standing over Faith, Kennedy asked, "Who's going out tonight?"

"Couple of the older ones, B, you and me," Faith replied, closing the magazine and laying it on her stomach.

"Big group," Kennedy raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, well, B's getting antsy about avoiding the Kartuk," Faith shrugged.

"I get it," Kennedy nodded, before switching topics, "Wanna hit up a bar after patrol?"

Faith's brow crinkled and she glanced away, "My recent track record is screaming 'no'."

Kennedy nodded, "Are things getting better?"

Faith shrugged again, "Yes and no. I'm officially back in the bedroom, but the space between us on the bed is huge."

Kennedy sighed, "Give her time."

Faith snorted, "I doubt she'll get a happy over a Rolex."

"I didn't mean…"

"I know what you meant. I just, I know, everyone says to give her time. I'm doing my best," Faith replied, sighing and putting her hand over her eyes.

The two women fell silent, and Kennedy shuffled her feet a few times before finally opening her mouth to speak upon thinking of a more neutral topic, "When are we heading out?"

"Nine," Faith replied quickly.

"Aiight, I'll see you later then," Kennedy smiled gently before leaving as Faith waved her out. _No that wasn't awkward at all._

* * *

Faith limped along behind the four other women, coming to a stop when she caught up with the rest of the group outside of a large mausoleum.

"Vamp nest," Kennedy stated and pointed, where three vampires walked into the mausoleum.

"Just when I thought tonight would be dull," Faith muttered, adjusting her ripped t-shirt, angry at the damage the last pair of demons did to her from the earlier slaying that night. The shirt was a dark gray, splattered with red blood from Faith's nose and green blood from the demons, a black crisscrossing harness holding the ripped parts together as well as supporting the sheath on her back where she kept her broad sword.

"Flanking positions, Faith and Aggie, stay out here," Buffy glanced back at Faith, causing her to smile gratefully, her knee throbbing from the earlier contact it had made with a tree trunk.

Falling back, Aggie and Faith did a circular recon of the mausoleum before returning to Jack, Buffy and Kennedy.

"No other exits, you're good," Faith informed them.

Buffy nodded and tilted her head, causing Kennedy and Jack to follow her silently down into the inhabited tomb.

"How do we know if they need back up with all the fighting in there?" Aggie asked.

"You'll learn to notice the difference between whether they're winning or losing with experience. Either that, or you'll hear them yell for backup,"

Faith replied dryly.

"So," Aggie began, glancing into the doorway upon hearing a female grunt followed by the sound of a body hitting the wall inside.

"That was Ken," Faith interjected, then, off of the girl's look, "You'll learn."

As the scuffle began to die down inside, Faith heard a twig snap nearby and turned her head. A flash of movement in her peripheral vision accompanied the sound of something being thrown. Ducking on instinct, Faith turned towards Aggie to tell her to drop, when a rock hit the young slayer in the head.

"Aggie!" Faith yelled, and sprang up, ignoring her knee screaming in pain, and began to move over to the crumpled body.

As she neared the door to the mausoleum, where the young slayer lay, a figure came running into Faith, hitting her around the hips like a bull, throwing off her balance. Before she could recover, the being snarled and rammed her again, throwing Faith into the mausoleum where she fell down the stairs in a heap. _I had to hit my knee on every step?_ Faith thought as she groaned on the floor. A pair of small hands gripped her under her arms and dragged her back further into the mausoleum before she had a chance to sit up.

"What happened?" Kennedy asked as Faith finally sat up, a jagged cut over her brow the only outward sign of the fight that had just taken place.

"Kartuk. Aggie's down. One of 'em slammed me down here when I went to help her."

"Guess they got tired of waiting for us," Buffy sighed, her hand on Faith's shoulder as she crouched behind the dark slayer.

"So they came for a fight?" Jack asked.

Faith felt Buffy squeeze her shoulder, "And now they'll get one."

"Wait, hold on, we can't engage them," Kennedy broke in suddenly.

A snarling at the entrance to the mausoleum caused the four women to look up.

"I don't think we have much of a choice if we wanna get out of this trap," Faith stated as Buffy helped her stand up.

Faith winced, knowing that at least one rib was broken, but stood up as straight as she could, slowly unsheathing her sword. Glancing around, Faith saw Jack and Kennedy pulling knives from either an ankle or thigh holster and Buffy putting her stake away, the only one preparing for hand-to-hand combat.

"Do you know how many there were?" Buffy asked, her eyes locked on the entrance.

"Only felt the one. Probably more, considering their size," Faith replied.

No further question or commands were voiced, as just then, three demons entered and began descending the stairs. Three more followed, and Faith inwardly groaned, already aware of how tough they were to fight. _Great._

* * *

"Help! We need some help! Someone get Sandra!" Faith yelled, as she carried Buffy's limp form through the front door, where Jack flattened herself against the wall upon opening the door. Kennedy limped in behind Faith, Aggie's arm over her shoulder.

"What's…oh my God," Willow stumbled back into the kitchen and hit the intercom, "Someone locate Sandra, we've got a triage heading to the basement now!"

Faith moved swiftly down the hall, allowing Jack to run ahead of her to open the door to the basement in the dining room. As she entered the doorway and started down the steps, she heard feet thundering down the stairwell to the first floor. Hitting the basement floor, Faith turned around and burst the double swaying doors of the trauma ward open, making sure Buffy's head didn't get hit in the process. At the first gurney she came to, Faith gently put Buffy down, her hand instantly putting pressure on the gaping wound on Buffy's collarbone. The long sleeved shirt Kennedy had taken off to soak up the blood was soaked crimson, yet Faith kept it in place, her hands pushing on it.

The sound of the double doors being pushed open caused Faith to glance over her shoulder, "Talk to me Faith, what happened?" Sandra asked, her hands going to the giant sink and washing herself quickly before drying her hands and pulling on a pair of latex gloves.

"We got trapped in a mausoleum by Kartuk demons. Six came in; I don't know how many stayed outside. It was a brawl. I was busy fending off four with Jess when I heard B let out this scream. Next thing I know is I'm pulling a severed demon head from B's neck; and I'm getting sprayed by her blood. I got my back torn up when I abandoned Jess, but Ken came over to help her out and then they shielded me as best they could until the last demon was dead. He must've lodged his horn into the skin below her collarbone and just done as much tearing as he could do," Faith replied quickly, her voice shaking.

"Move away," Sandra commanded before gently pulling the soaked shirt from Buffy's neck, "Shit. Why didn't you take her to the hospital?"

"Do you want me to start that list of reasons?" Faith shot back.

Sandra was quiet a moment, assessing the situation, "Okay, I need help here. Get Willow, she's the only one with any official medical experience."

Faith nodded silently and left, only to see half of the house crammed down in the basement outside. "Uhh, Will? Are you down here?"

"I'm here," Willow moved from the back of the crowd, "What's going on?"

"Sandra needs you in there," Faith explained, only to see the redhead pale.

Squaring her shoulders, Willow nodded and moved past her into the ward. Faith glanced back to see the doors swing shut before addressing the group outside.

"All right, there's nothing you guys can do right now, so those of you with school tomorrow, head back to bed. Aggie, Jack and Ken, I want you guys to get cleaned up, so don't run off," Faith glanced around; watching most of the group disperse with quiet murmuring.

Her eyes fell on Xander, who paced back and forth, and Dawn, who sat on the floor next to Xander's workshop, while Giles stood near her. Kennedy, Aggie and Jack moved over towards Faith, grim looks on their faces.

"What's the deal?" Kennedy asked quietly.

Faith shifted her weight, and sensed the three other Scoobies attempting to listen in, "I don't know."

"She lost a lot of blood," Jack murmured.

Faith nodded mutely, only to turn upon Willow pushing a door open with her elbow, "Dawn, how do you feel about giving some blood?"

Dawn stood and walked over without a word, her face drawn. Faith watched silently as the sister who was more than just a blood relation disappeared behind the swinging doors. It was only then that Faith realized that she was covered in dried blood. Swallowing audibly, Faith took a seat on the bottom of the stairs, her own wounds causing her to hiss in pain.

"Faith? Do you need some medical attention?" Giles asked, cleaning his glasses as he moved towards her.

"Hell yeah, but I want to make sure B is gonna be okay first," Faith replied, glancing his way.

"Why don't you let me take a look at your wounds, all four of you?" Giles glanced at the four slayers as they came closer, "I'm sure we'll be kept well informed of the situation down here."

Faith saw the questions in the other women's eyes and nodded before standing up, "C'mon, let's do this upstairs. Give them as much room as possible down here."

"But…you'll need stitches…" Kennedy interjected as they climbed the stairs. Faith stopped at the doorway to look back down, but didn't reply.

"I can clean and dress the wounds enough so that you'll be stable enough for Sandra when she's done with Buffy," Giles explained, his eyes meeting Faith's at the top of the stairs, _us two, we know far too much about wounds. Making them and fixing them._

Faith exited the basement stairwell and allowed Giles to take the lead. Giles motioned the group to follow him upstairs. The women followed him in silence, all of them lost in their own thoughts. When Giles motioned them into the third floor bathroom, Faith almost smiled. Second to the basement, this bathroom was the most heavily stocked for medical supplies due in part to being on the top floor, but mostly because Buffy preferred to take care of herself if she was able.

Claiming the toilet seat, Faith sighed as she sat down and slowly pulled off her boots. Looking up, Faith saw Giles washing his hands, Kennedy leaning on the doorframe. Glancing to her left, Faith allowed a small smile to appear at the sight of Aggie and Jess sitting in the tub just so they could get off of their feet.

"Now then," Giles began, the sink filled with steaming water, "Who's first?"

* * *

Faith sat beside Buffy's bed in a pair of sweats and a wife beater, sterile gauze taped to her back from the stitched gashes the Kartuk had given her. Her hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, a foot tucked under her while her free leg was bent at the knee, the foot resting on the edge of the chair, allowing her to lean her head against it.

"You should get some rest, you know. Give your body time to heal," Sandra's voice jolted Faith and she lifted her head and turned to look over at the other woman.

Faith eyed the brunette for a moment, regarding her as she calmly checked Buffy's vitals. The storm had passed, Buffy had flat lined twice before stabilizing, and both times, Faith could feel the connection she had to her sister slayer wavering in strength. The first time, Faith was holding a towel to her chest as Giles pasted ointment on her back, and she had lost her balance at the sudden shock of it. The second time, Faith had been coming down the stairs in a clean shirt after Giles had finished with her, and she almost slipped down the entire flight. Now, it was a waiting game.

"It's been eight hours, get some rest," Sandra soothed.

"I'm fine," Faith replied in a horse whisper.

Sandra sighed, "All right, fine." Faith's gaze returned to Buffy's serene face as Sandra turned to leave. Pushing a door open, Sandra paused and turned to look at Faith, "If she's not up in another hour, and you aren't in your bed, I'll make everyone in this house get you upstairs."

Faith smiled gently at the attempt at a threat, "If she's not up in an hour, I'll sleep on a cot."

The sound of Sandra sighing as she exited accompanied the swinging doors. Faith leaned closer to Buffy, placing a hand on the bed, her fingers lightly tracing the back of the other slayer's hand. Pulling the chair against the side of the bed, Faith rested her head on the edge of the mattress.

* * *

_"Why do you always have to be somewhere cold?" Faith turned at the sound of Buffy's voice, a smile blossoming over her features._

_"Not my choice," Faith replied as she moved towards the blonde._

_"This can't keep going on," Buffy continued, as if not even hearing Faith's reply._

_"What can't?" Faith asked, and suddenly Buffy looked at her._

_"It's always coldest before dawn," Buffy replied, but this too, Faith felt was not so much a response as another continuation._

_Looking around, Faith took in her surroundings, suddenly realizing they were in Finland, one of her many European stops._

_"Doesn't that go 'it's always darkest before dawn'?" Faith replied jokingly, just waiting for the next piece of cryptic information as she turned around to look up and down the empty street covered in snow._

_"No."_

_Faith spun around, her eyes locking on Buffy's._

_"Morning sun will blind you from the horrors of the cold," Buffy continued, "Time is not yours."_

* * *

_­_

Faith shot upright in her chair, a pulled muscle screaming in her neck from how she had slept. Rubbing it, Faith glanced over at Buffy, whose eyes were still closed. Leaning back in her chair, Faith rubbed her eyes, "Fucked up. Why the cryptic shit?"

"Where were we?"

Faith dropped her hands and shot from her chair, leaning over Buffy's body, "Oh my God, Buffy!" Leaning down Faith kissed the blonde gently on the forehead.

"Faith," Buffy murmured, "Where were we?"

Faith glanced towards the intercom before looking back down at the blonde.

"Call Sandra after you answer my question," Buffy continued, and Faith smiled at the no-nonsense tone.

"Finland," Faith replied. As Buffy opened her mouth to ask another question, Faith laid a finger on her lips, "After. Answers after."

Faith felt a heat flush her body when Buffy kissed her finger, and pulled away.

"This is Faith in the basement, if someone can locate Sandra, inform her that Buffy is awake," Faith spoke rapidly into the intercom, her usual drawl switching to a faster-paced Bostonian dialect in her excitement over Buffy's reawakening. Turning around, Faith moved quickly back over to Buffy's bed, clasping the blonde's hand tightly between her two bigger ones, "I thought I might lose you," Faith whispered, her voice cracking as the reality of the situation began to finally hit her.

"You're hurt," Buffy murmured back, her eyes focusing on the top of the gauze that made its way over Faith's shoulder. Faith smiled softly and leaned in to kiss Buffy softly.

"You can't die on me anymore, you got that?" Faith whispered against Buffy's lips, feeling a weak nod as Buffy's nose rubbed hers in agreement, "You can't do that to me. Not when…"

Faith felt the words building up inside of her, preparing to finally tell the older slayer; pulling away just enough to look into Buffy's eyes, Faith could see that Buffy knew. It was at that moment that Sandra pushed open the doors, jostling the pair apart. Faith stood ramrod straight, her face flushing with embarrassment, unable to glance at the blonde below her. It was only when she felt a reassuring squeeze on her still clasped hand that Faith looked back down at Buffy, and saw the ghost of a smile appear briefly. _I know you know. But I need to say it anyway._

"Hey Faith, Buffy, glad to see you awake," Sandra smiled, unaware of the moment she had interrupted, "Faith, Dawn was asking for you upstairs."

Faith nodded, and watched as Sandra moved towards the wash basin, before turning to lean down to Buffy's ear, Faith allowed her lips to tickle the blonde's shell, causing a shiver to run through her body. Pushing down all worries and fears, Faith murmured gently, "I love you," against Buffy's ear before kissing it softly and standing and leaving without waiting for a response. She could feel the connection between the pair vibrating throughout her body as she proudly pushed the double doors open, the stare of Buffy's eyes on her back causing her to grin as she began to climb the stairwell. Pulling open the door to the dining room, Faith saw Dawn look up at her from the table, a pile of books sprawled out in front of her, a notebook open to her right with blue notes covering most of the page. As she smiled gently at the younger Summers girl, Faith felt a tingling in her head. _Weird, maybe Sandra was right about getting sleep…_ Faith shook her head, and suddenly gripped the frame of the door hard enough to hear it crack. As Faith's vision blurred to nothingness, she heard Dawn's chair hit the floor as she yelled out the rogue slayer's name in panic.

* * *

The steady sound of a heart monitor blipping met Faith's ears as she seeped back into consciousness. Exhaling painfully, Faith crinkled her brows together- the extent of her abilities for the moment. At the soft touch of a thumb rubbing over her forearm, sending goose bumps up her body, Faith attempted to open her eyes. The halo of blonde hair backlit by the bright lights of the trauma ward caused Faith to shut her eyes and groan in pain.

"Hey," Buffy's voice was quiet, soothing, and Faith allowed a sliver of a smile to appear briefly without opening her eyes, "I'm glad you're up."

Faith felt the question forming in her brain, but before she could speak, Buffy placed a cool hand on her forehead, brushing back strands of hair and kissed her softly, "You've been out for over 36 hours. It was the second life-force attack." Buffy whispered softly, and Faith heard her sigh in discomfort as she settled back down into a chair. "You cracked another rib on the way down the stairs, and suffered a concussion from hitting the basement floor straight on."

_Thus the pain is explained away,_ Faith thought, furrowing her brow and nodding slowly.

"Get some more rest, I'm not going anywhere," Buffy continued, her hand trailing along Faith's arm.

When Buffy's fingers made it to Faith's hand, Faith grabbed on, lacing their fingers together. It was all she had, and after the shit they had just gone through, she wasn't about to let go. _Not again._

* * *

When Faith awoke again, she felt a warm body pressed up against her, a leg thrown over her lower half, and an arm pulling her tight under her breasts. Opening her eyes, Faith sighed contentedly up at hers and Buffy's bedroom ceiling, thanking whoever moved her up here and out of the closest thing they had to a hospital in the basement. The ticklish feeling of Buffy's nose pressing lightly against the nape of her neck as she exhaled in sleep brought a warm smile to her lips. _If this is the closest I'm gonna get to heaven, I'm good to go._ Faith turned her head to glance out at the open patio door, seeing the remnants of the day fading into the blue of twilight. The slight movement caused Buffy to shift in her sleep, her hand creeping up to cup one of Faith's breasts, and Faith felt her body tense at the innocently sexual touch.

It had only been a short time that the pair had been truly intimate, and yet, it was as if they had been building towards it for years, _hell, we probably were_. When admittance was finally doled out, and the tension got so high, Faith closed her eyes, remembering learning every curve and crevice of the blonde beauty lying beside her. Feeling the guilt wash over her at her most recent screw-up in their extensively screwed up relationship, Faith sighed painfully, knowing just how easily they could hurt each other, _it's the best thing we know. Fuck, will we ever learn?_ Faith sighed again and opened her eyes, her gaze making its way to a rather intricate cobweb in between the light fixtures in the ceiling. Cocking her head to one side, Faith smiled curiously up at the art, _busy little guy._

The brush of a thumb over her nipple brought Faith's focus back immediately, and against her recovering will, felt her body flush at the not so innocuous touch. Faith had learned many of Buffy's unconscious mannerisms in relation to her body; _that was all you, B_, Faith thought, smirking down at the blonde head just visible below her eye line. Faith didn't need to voice her knowledge of the touch, seeing as her body had already betrayed her in the stiffening of her nipple. Turning her head towards the crown of Buffy's, Faith kissed the soft hairline, "You keep that up, you're gonna hafta follow through."

"Kinda the plan," Buffy murmured back, a smile spreading across her face as she lazily opened her eyes and looked up at Faith.

Faith quirked an eyebrow, a smile playing at the edges of her lips. As her eyes fell shut, Faith glimpsed Buffy leaning up to seek out her mouth, capturing it a moment later in a soft kiss. Lifting her hand to splay across the blonde's lower back, the tank top riding up at the touch, Faith smiled inwardly as Buffy cupped her cheek softly, her tongue slowly making its way into her own mouth. As the kiss meshed into a second one, Faith pulled Buffy more astride herself, her other hand finally coming into play to make its way into the tangles of blonde hair falling about the older woman's face. As Buffy pulled away slowly, Faith sighed softly, and opened her eyes to dark green ones.

"That was nice," Faith murmured before feeling her breath hitch when Buffy leaned down to her ear, her lips dangerously close to touching her.

"That was a promise," Buffy replied quietly, her tone tinged with want.

Faith furrowed her brow and moved enough so that Buffy would pull away and look at her directly, "What?"

"So much has happened," Buffy continued, and Faith noticed the look of sadness in her eyes.

"Whoa, B, what's the matter? Are we not okay yet? I mean, I thought…" Faith stammered, attempting to scoot up in the bed, only to stop when she felt a twinge in her ribs, _fuck the broken ones._

"No, we're okay," Buffy replied, "Sorry, no, I'm sorry," Faith shook her head in confusion and Buffy shut her mouth before smiling sheepishly, "Sorry. We, you and I, we're okay."

"Okay," Faith replied,_ I'm not confused at all_, "Then what's the deal?"

Buffy looked hard at Faith for a moment before sighing and leaning onto one elbow, falling off of Faith enough to allow herself to run a hand through her hair. Faith shifted a bit to remain close, her eyes focused on the other slayer.

"You said you loved me," Buffy revealed quietly, in a whisper, as if saying it any louder would break it into irreparable pieces. Faith felt her confusion melt away, and shut her eyes as she took a deep breath through her nose. "Did you mean it?"

Faith's eyes snapped open at the quietly fearful question, and she felt worry seep into her veins, _why would you question this?_

"Why wouldn't I?" Faith replied, dropping her gaze as she felt the old distrust seep into her system. _So easy to hurt._

The look of a woman without an answer to a question that should never have needed to have been asked encompassed the pair before Faith shifted slightly and broke the intimacy of the moment.

"Faith, I…" Buffy began, her fingers lifting to trail along Faith's forearm. Faith tensed at the touch, refusing to look at the other woman, "I'm sorry." Faith snorted, "Look at me."

It was the powerful pull of a thumb and forefinger yanking Faith's chin over to force the dark slayer to look the original Chosen One in the eye, "We're not good at conveying our emotions correctly to each other. We don't talk well and we turn into enemies like it's a habit we'll never kick. We need to work on this. You and I cannot just go back to being stubborn and sulky with the occasional fist-fight like we used to," Buffy commanded Faith's attention, letting out a shaky sigh at the end of her statement, finishing softly, "Not when there's so much emotion involved."

"You just get that memo?" Faith shot back, frustrated at the fact that Buffy had finally pointed out the obvious.

"Fuck, Faith! You ever think I might be in love with you as well? You think this might be difficult to get out, considering our past?" Buffy threw up her hands and spun to get out of the bed.

Faith, suddenly grasping the fragility of the situation, moved quickly, grabbed Buffy's wrist, and spun her back around to face her. It was without words that Faith claimed Buffy's mouth, without apologies, without permission. This was more than want, take, have. This was claiming, reclaiming and moving forward. The hiccupped gasp as Buffy caught her breath before returning the kiss was all Faith needed to know that the woman had been on the verge of crying. It was with a sudden tenderness that Faith slowed the passionate kiss down into a tender nip at the corner of Buffy's mouth, gently pulling the woman back onto the bed, a slender, yet powerful thigh sliding over each of her own, straddling her.

Slowly, lazily, Faith trailed her lips along the delicate jaw line before flicking her tongue out at a sensitive spot behind Buffy's ear. The sharp inhalation next to her ear sent jolts down between her legs, and Faith began to feel the oh-so familiar throb begin to build. Breaking for a moment, Faith dropped her head quickly to the exposed skin of Buffy's neck; claiming Buffy her own as she bit down on the scar that Angel had left behind so many years ago. As she did so, the blonde's body went rigid before grinding down hard into Faith. Rising to meet the thrust, Faith let out a quiet groan of desire before a hand lifted from her shoulder and pulled her face back up level with Buffy's.

Dark green eyes met what Faith knew were probably a pair of almost black eyes. Faith waited, expecting Buffy to say something, but she didn't speak. Instead, she held Faith's gaze as she leaned into her body, pushing herself against Faith, who hissed at the contact, and ground down a second time. Faith rose to meet her and the pair groaned together. Faith felt Buffy release her hold on her shoulders, and before she knew what was happening, watched, openmouthed, as Buffy pulled her tank top over her head before dropping her hands to Faith's wife beater. Faith reacted slowly, her eyes wide at the aggressive nature in the blonde, and feeling herself getting wetter at witnessing this more assertive and obviously turned on version of Buffy.

"Faith," The name was said in a low growl, and Faith felt her hips jerk at the tone, _fuck me, she is unhinging me faster than I thought possible._ The knowing grin crawled across Buffy's features as she watched Faith's reactions, "Lift up your arms."

The command was kept low, the tone leaving no room for argument, and Faith complied instantly. Her shirt was thrown wildly, and before Faith had a chance, Faith was flat on her back, fully enjoying going along for the ride as Buffy took charge. Lifting her head, Faith met Buffy in a kiss that pushed her head back down into the mattress, the blonde's tongue slipping forcefully into her mouth, seeking out her own, claiming her. It was when Buffy's hand moved from the side of her face to her breast, pinching a nipple between her thumb and forefinger that Faith broke the kiss to hiss. Raising her knee to meet Buffy's downward motion, Faith closed her eyes as Buffy's lips slid to her neck, nipping and biting their way to her clavicle. It wasn't until those same lips slid over an areole, a tongue delicately twirling around it in a way that was making Faith arch her back into the other slayer's body that Faith felt the hand leave her other breast and trek slowly, yet deliberately down her body.

"God, Buffy," It was the full name, and Buffy stopped momentarily, her eyes meeting Faith's, understanding the weight of the moment before her hand slipped inside the waistband of Faith's shorts.

When a delicate finger slid along the edges of her wetness, Faith let out a strangled moan, her hand coming up to tangle in Buffy's hair. _She will be the end of me._ It was the last coherent thought Faith had before two of Buffy's fingers slipped between her folds, entering her swiftly, the desire and passion driving the pair to reach the culmination faster. Faith pulled at Buffy desperately as an expert thumb moved in circles around her clit, gasping when Buffy finally released her nipple from her mouth and crashed into a kiss. As her tongue twirled around the Rogue Slayer's tongue in synch with her thumb's movement, Faith arched her back, tearing her mouth from Buffy's as her orgasm shuddered its way through her, her body clenching Buffy's fingers, holding them inside of her. Buffy eased her back to Earth with light kisses along her jaw and neck, her thumb slowing its movements, but not stopping completely.

"B…Buffy," Faith groaned, feeling a second orgasm building, "Fuck…"

The second was less powerful, but equally potent, and Faith felt herself trembling in the aftermath. Lifting her hand, she pulled Buffy's mouth back to her own in a sated kiss that said so many more things than words could. Buffy had taken her in a way that Faith had never let anyone ever do so before, and she had loved every second of it. Pulling away, Faith felt Buffy pull her fingers free and lift them to her mouth, her eyes never breaking contact with Faith's, the dark green twinkling as she sucked her two fingers into her mouth licking them clean. Faith felt the desire uncurling yet again in her stomach, and growled low as she pulled Buffy's hand free and lifted her head to kiss Buffy, tasting herself on the blonde's lips as her tongue moved within the small mouth.

Pulling away, Faith started to roll them, to take the lead, but a sharp pain in her side caused her to wince and pull back. _Oh my fucking God._

"Your ribs?" Buffy asked, her voice full of concern, the moment of lust put on pause.

"Yeah. Fuck. Of all the bad timing…" Faith trailed off, her eyes lifting to catch the other woman's.

"It's fine, Faith," Buffy replied, a devious smile spreading across her face as she placed at hand on either side of Faith's head and moved her half-naked body over the brunette's, dropping her head to the other woman's ear, her voice deep with lust, "Slayers heal real fast. Pretty soon you'll be able to hold me up off the floor and fuck me against a wall for as long as you want."

The visual was now burned into her brain and Faith shuddered, "Fuck, B, you can't just go and say things like that…"

"And not follow through?" The tone was playful, and Faith felt herself getting wet all over again. The blonde glanced down the length of their bodies, before speaking again, her tone rueful, "So many clothes."

"Take them off," Faith growled, lifting her head to suck on Buffy's neck.

"That's the plan," Buffy replied, her tone hitching as Faith flicked her tongue out to sooth the red flesh, the mark would remain on Buffy for some time, even with Slayer healing.

"I like that plan," Faith replied her tone a mixture of desire and playfulness, "I say full steam ahead to that plan."

"Well then…" Buffy began, only to flinch when the buzzer sounded on the speaker.

"Buffy? If I'm waking you, I'm sorry, but we have some important… guests that you and Faith should come down to see," Willow's voice sounded apologetic, and Buffy hung her head, her forehead dropping to Faith's shoulder.

When Willow didn't continue, Buffy thanked the woman silently and lifted her head to look down at Faith.

"You know, their timing sucks worse than my injuries," Faith replied, smiling up at the blonde, "And also, I don't need to be healed to get you off. You being on top is a perfect position."

As if to prove her point, Faith quickly slipped a hand between them, sliding a finger along Buffy's slit outside her panties. The blonde shuddered, dropping her head to Faith's shoulder again, grinding into the hand.

"Fuck, Faith, you keep doing that and we'll never get downstairs," Buffy whispered, her tone dangerously animalistic.

Faith felt her body shiver at the tone, and replied in a quiet growl of her own against the blonde's ear, "That's the point."

Without waiting for permission, Faith tugged Buffy's panties to the side and slipped two fingers inside of the practically dripping sex.

"Fuck, you're so wet," Faith groaned against the blonde's ear, feeling her shiver at the words. Slipping her thumb inside the interfering panties, Faith roughly dragged it over Buffy's clit, knowing the best and fastest way to get the other woman off. Slow would come later- much, much later, and preferably for a very long time. For now, Faith wanted to return the primal release that the other Chosen One had given her so ferociously just minutes before. Lifting her thigh, Faith pushed her hand harder against the blonde, who was meeting her thrust for thrust, her breath coming out in quiet gasps against Faith's neck.

It wasn't too long before Faith felt Buffy increase her pace, before her back stiffened and she let out a loud moan that Faith knew Slayers would hear as it traveled out the open porch door. Buffy clamped down on Faith's fingers, pressing her body hard against Faith as she rode out her orgasm, her body trembling in the aftershocks. Lifting her head after Faith pulled out of her, Buffy kissed Faith gently, the tone of the kiss conveying her thanks, her quivering body expressing its thanks in being sated.

"Thank you," Buffy said quietly when she pulled back to look down at Faith.

Faith smiled gently, "My pleasure."

"Mine too," Buffy replied, before frowning, "We need to go downstairs though."

As if knowing her thoughts, the buzzer sounded again.

"Okay now we definitely know you're awake," Willow continued, "And while I would like to say- ignoring the approaching apocalypse- that was a nice sound effect, we really need you to come down here."

Buffy flushed red, and Faith chuckled.

"Oh you're never gonna live that down," Faith laughed as Buffy rolled off of her and went in search of some actual clothes.

Faith got up slowly, her ribs twinging in pain as she bent to pick up her wife beater. Buffy came up behind her with a bra, and snapped it together once Faith pulled it on. Silently, Buffy helped Faith into her wife beater, herself only in a bra and the white tank that had been discarded earlier, a pair of shorts completing the causal outfit. Buffy had pulled her hair into a ponytail and cupped Faith's cheek gently before leaning in and kissing her softly.

"I love you," Buffy stated quietly when she pulled away.

"I love you," Faith answered just as quietly, her body and brain a mixture of awe and love as the declarations were made in the post-coital calm.

Slipping her hand into Faith's, Buffy cocked her head to one side, "C'mon."

They walked slowly and silently down the hall, the scent of their recent activities clinging to them, and Faith felt a grin spreading across her face.

As they went down the stairs, Buffy glanced at her, "What?"

"Nothing," Faith shook her head, "Just… everyone's gonna know exactly what we were doing."

"Not my problem," Buffy replied, smirking, and Faith cocked an eyebrow, _well, haven't you grown in the years since I first knew you, B._

"Proud?" Faith prodded, still grinning.

Buffy stopped on the second to last landing, the room below not yet in sight, "Definitely."

Faith smiled into the soft kiss Buffy planted on her lips before they continued down the stairs, only to stop suddenly at the people standing in the room right below the stairwell, everyone looking up at them in mixtures of surprise and amusement.

Faith knew her jaw dropped slightly even as she felt Buffy tense beside her.

"Hey."

"Angel," Buffy replied, her voice expressing the surprise and, Faith turned to look at her, a bit of embarrassment. _Well, ain't this just a big ol' reunion._

* * *

"So, what brings you here Big A?" Faith inquired as she sank sideways into the plush chair in the living room, Buffy standing beside the chair, her arms crossed under her chest.

Angel glanced between the pair and Faith cocked her head to one side, giving him a look that blatantly stated "don't go there" while waiting for him to respond.

"Willow gave us a call after you had the final life-force attack, thought you could use all the help you could get," Angel answered, his eyes catching the look Faith gave him and nodding imperceptibly at her.

"Us?" Buffy asked, her tone sharp.

Angel shifted his feet, his body giving off a sense of discomfort. Faith flicked her eyes to the other people in the room, and saw a knowing look in Willow's eyes. Xander was staring at the floor, and Giles and Dawn were watching Angel and Buffy respectively. Andrew was staring at his hands and Kennedy was picking this moment of all moments to tie her shoelaces. _Weird._

"Spike's in the barn," Angel explained, and Faith saw Buffy stiffen. _Shit._

"Was he invited in?" Buffy looked towards the rest of the group.

Xander shrugged, "Didn't have a chance, he'd already stalked off by the time I opened the door."

Buffy nodded but didn't reply, "So is everything tied up and okay in L.A.?"

"We have a few things going on, but nothing the others can't handle," Angel didn't elaborate, and Faith found it interesting that no one pursued the subject.

"Have you been caught up?" Buffy asked, switching topics.

"Willow told us the general situation, but nothing in heavy detail," Angel answered.

"Giles, Andrew, Dawn and I can catch you up," Willow interjected, her eyes meeting Buffy's in a silent conversation.

"I'll go see Spike," Buffy sighed, and Faith knew this was not something she wanted to deal with right now. _So much water under that bridge._

As the group began to break apart, Faith touched Buffy's arm, causing her to turn and look back at her, "You me to come with?"

Buffy smiled gently, "No, it's okay. I need to do this alone."

Faith nodded and watched her exit the living room before entering the dining room. Turning towards Angel, she smiled and hugged him, "Hey big guy, nice to have you here."

"Thanks, you look…happy," Angel commented, before a twinkle appeared in his eye, "And not just because of what I heard."

"Fuck, you heard?"

"Everyone heard down here," Angel smiled openly, "I'm happy for you, the both of you."

"Really?" Faith squinted her eyes, and tilted her head to one side.

Angel became serious, "Yeah. I'm glad you're happy."

Faith nodded before turning to let Angel pass when Willow asked if he was coming. Looking up, Faith watched Xander and Kennedy come over to her.

"Wanna shoot some pool? You know, since we hafta wait for everyone to finish catching up?" Kennedy asked, and Faith nodded.

"Sure, let's go."

As they descended the stairs, Xander piped up behind her, "You guys have got some serious vocal chords."

Faith laughed, "Fuck."

"Yes indeed," Kennedy replied, causing the three of them to laugh.

"You know you're never gonna live that down, right?" Xander continued.

"That's what I told B," Faith commented.

"You weren't exactly quiet either," Kennedy stated, snickering.

"Fuck, seriously?" Faith's eyes widened.

"Oh yeah," Kennedy nodded her head as she racked up the balls.

"Never gonna live it down," Xander stated again, grinning. _This is gonna be a long game,_ Faith thought as she shook her head, smiling.


	24. Ennui

AN: All righty, this is the big lead up to end chapter! I had it outlined to be done by this chapter, with a final epilogue…and then realized that would be _far_ too rushed. Excessively so. Ergo, a few chapters more.

However, this chapter may still seem to be slightly disjointed/rushed. Keep in mind that the timeline has been 3 days for chapters 20-22 and skipping ahead a week and a half or so for chapter 23. So, this isn't all that rushed in that perspective. A lot of things have to be tied up in order to move this story along and there is no way to avoid the jerky scene changes.

* * *

_"Tell me I'm what your hands were made for/ Tell me I'm who your mouth was made for"_ – Tegan & Sara "Come On"

_"Tonight we've got a chance./ Sunrise./ The last sunrise."_ – Aiden "Last Sunrise"

* * *

It had been three and a half days since the final life-force attack, and the feeling of an impending apocalypse was enveloping the entire mansion in a blanket of tension. Faith's current form of dealing with this seemingly dire situation was listening to a portion of the Scooby Gang chattering idly about the renovations to the mansion that Buffy had Okayed with Xander to begin in June over tea. Faith had her chair at the dining table turned sideways, her feet up on the chair next to her, a mug of tea cupped between her two hands in her lap as she listened to Dawn explain the necessity of additional bathrooms, _as if two communal bathrooms, two private, and two public bathrooms weren't enough already, _Faith mused before lifting the mug to sip quietly, her eyes flicking to meet Buffy's, whose gaze had narrowed on the spot where Faith's lips met the mug rim. Faith couldn't hid the cocky smirk that spread out across her features as Buffy realized Faith had caught her and turned her head quickly to refocus on Xander's response to Dawn.

"Just remember, more bathrooms means I need to remodel the entire structure of this place in order for the piping to be done correctly. You can't just throw a toilet into the far corner of the third floor without thinking about how to get the water in and the waste out," Xander replied, leaning forward in his seat and resting his elbows on the table edge.

"Oh," Dawn sat back in her seat, a forlorn look on her face.

"What about another bathroom on the first floor? Next to the headquarters? Or Willow's giant study, whatever it is," Andrew asked.

"It's more of a combination of the two, Andrew," Giles explained tersely, and Faith grinned again, knowing Andrew's discontent over Willow getting a bigger study.

Xander ticked his gaze to Buffy, who nodded, "Sure, we can do that. Not so much trouble on the first floor. It's the other floors it would be more difficult with."

Before another topic could be broached, Willow strode in and slapped a manila folder down on the table, effectively shattering the relaxed mood.

"What's with the tragedy mask Will?" Xander asked when Willow didn't speak, but merely looked from face to face.

"Your meeting with Alice yesterday really helped us pin-point the time frame for when everything is supposed to go down," Willow began, addressing Faith.

Faith nodded, sighing. She had finally gone to visit the psychiatrist that Willow and Giles asked her to go to almost two weeks ago. In all honesty, the only real reason she went was because of the unavoidable and fast-approaching apocalypse in addition to the attacks on both her and Buffy. There was a large amount of pride swallowed in walking through those doors willingly, and Faith was glad that no one seemed to take a joking interest in her visit.

"When?" Buffy prodded, refocusing Faith's thoughts.

"Three days from now. Early morning," Willow explained, her eyes flicking back to Faith.

"Before dawn," Faith breathed, her dreams finally coming together.

"Yeah," Willow agreed, "There's a cold front moving in with rain; it's supposed to reach us then."

"So we pull all of the people here who are capable of fighting and get them ready," Buffy began, standing from her seat to pace.

Giles nodded, "That sounds like a good idea. We can formulate a mode of attack later on tonight and go from there."

"Sounds good to me," Buffy nodded, then, to Willow, "Do you have anything new on the magicks?"

Willow sighed, "I finally found a weak link this morning on the signature with the Coven's help. I can go into all the details tonight so I don't have to repeat myself."

"Hey, why not a full scale meeting in the Pit tonight after Vi, Ken and Rona get back from patrol?" Faith added, glancing around.

Dawn nodded her agreement, and after glancing around the table, Buffy also nodded, "Okay, ten p.m. meeting in the Pit, everyone in the house is to be there. Andrew? Can you make sure the message gets out?"

"Not a problem," Andrew smiled reassuringly.

"Thanks," Buffy returned the smile with a tight one of her own as she shifted her weight to her other foot as the small group fell silent.

"Has Sandra started up her pre-apocalypse music yet?" Dawn asked suddenly.

"Oh yeah. Select songs from Aiden, Linkin Park and the _Underworld: Evolution_ soundtrack have been playing the past few days," Faith replied with a grin, "Which reminds me," Faith looked over at Buffy, "We should go down and get the final OK from her about us."

Buffy nodded, then looked around, "Are we good for now?"

Willow nodded, "Yup. I'll get all the information I've got together for tonight."

"That'd be great, thanks Will," Buffy smiled before making eye contact with Faith, who stood and followed her as she turned and walked towards the door leading to the basement.

As Faith's boots clunked their way noisily down the stairwell behind Buffy, Faith began to hear the strains of music making its way up to them. Coming up short at the platform where the stairwell emptied out, Buffy turned to look back at Faith, a question in her eyes, "This sounds familiar."

Faith cocked her head, focusing on the music floating through the double doors before grinning, "It's Frou Frou."

"Foo who?"

Faith chuckled as she brushed past Buffy and strode towards the double swing doors. The sound of her pushing them open caused Sandra to look up over her reading glasses, her hands placed on the table on either side of a sheet of paper, a pen held lightly between two fingers in her right hand.

"Are we holding out for a hero?" Faith asked, grinning, causing Sandra to grin back.

"I figured it'd be nice to listen to something less depressing and more upbeat," Sandra explained before glancing over Faith's shoulder to Buffy as the blonde walked in.

"I still don't get the significance," Buffy shrugged before coming to halt upon the last lyrical line that streamed forth.

_"He's gotta be strong/ and he's gotta be fast/ and he's gotta be fresh from the fight…"_

Faith quirked an eyebrow as the mixed emotions of realization and dislike battled over her features.

"What?" Sandra asked.

"Oh sure, 'cause there are no women who can be heroes," Buffy grumbled before hopping up on a bed.

Faith chuckled again and walked over to her, kissing her forehead gently, "Cute," Faith whispered along her brow line before turning to lean on the bed and face Sandra. "We're here for the final check up that you demanded."

"Right, well, with the injuries and blood loss you sustained," Sandra glanced between the two, "Even as Slayers, I still wanted to make sure everything was A-ok. I know you will heal in just over a day from most any injury, but these particular ones were hindered by either not enough blood, or by have your very life sucked out of you."

"Well, when you put it that way, I feel all violated," Faith faux-grumbled, rolling her eyes.

"You should," Sandra shook her head as she went to wash her hands.

Buffy leaned over against Faith's shoulder, her head laying to rest against Faith's temple while they waited, and Faith felt a satisfied smile make its way to her face before Sandra turned around. Upon taking in the comfortably intimate moment, Sandra returned Faith's smile before walking over, causing Buffy to sit back up.

"Who wants to go first?" Sandra asked glancing between the pair, "No takers? Right then, Buffy, lose the shirt."

"Whoa," Faith's eyes widened and the sudden need to either become turned on or laugh caused her to jerk and start coughing.

"Faith? You okay?" Buffy asked, laughing herself as she deftly pulled her t-shirt over her head.

Faith sobered up instantly, her eyes drawn to the pale skin, marred only by a white scar dancing jaggedly along her clavicle and disappearing upon reaching her throat; a hint of bruising the only remains of the horrific night in the mausoleum. Sandra placed her hands along the scar, and Faith felt herself take a sharp breath, a tremor in her slayer connection causing her to look up at the blonde, who was eyeing her with a confused look in her eyes. Faith shook her head at the silent question and let out the breath, calming down.

"This doesn't hurt?" Buffy shook her head as Sandra put pressure along the scar, "Has there been any tightness or sensitivity?"

"It's felt tight, but today it's been pretty good," Buffy replied as Sandra pulled away and nodded, signaling Buffy that she could put her shirt back on.

"You should be perfectly fine by tomorrow," Sandra replied, "Put some lotion on it, keep it from drying up."

Buffy nodded before asking, "Will I always have this scar?"

"Scar tissue," Sandra shrugged.

"It fades," Faith replied absently before shaking her head and glancing up curiously at Buffy, whose eyes had widened at the comment.

"Buffy?" Sandra prodded softly.

"You said that back in Sunnydale…" Buffy trailed off.

Faith furrowed her brow, "No I didn't."

Buffy swallowed audibly, "You don't remember?"

Faith felt a stirring of worry flash through her but ignored it, "Remember what?"

Buffy sighed and shook her head, "Never mind."

"O-k…" Sandra eyed Buffy a moment longer before turning to look at Faith, raising her eyebrows in question. Faith, for her part, could only shrug before pulling her shirt off without being asked.

Sandra, attempting to move the mood and conversation past the awkward moment, gently touched Faith's ribs, applying pressure, "No pain? I don't see any bruising."

"I'm five by five," Faith replied calmly.

"And your back?" Sandra added. Faith sighed and turned around.

"That scar should go away shortly, it healed well," Sandra continued after glancing at Faith's back for a moment.

Faith turned back around and pulled her shirt back on, "We good Doc?"

Sandra glared at Faith, only to relax at the wink the rogue slayer aimed at her, "As far as I can tell, you two are good. Just…try to take care of yourselves in this battle."

"You know us…" Faith began, grinning.

Sandra cut off her statement with a wave, pointing them towards the door. As the pair exited the trauma ward, Faith lightly gripped Buffy around her arm and pulled her aside.

"Hey, what was that in there?" Faith asked gently out of curiosity.

"It…it doesn't matter," Buffy sighed, shaking her head.

"It seems to matter to you," Faith countered, cocking her head to one side and smiling gently.

Buffy stopped for a moment, as if trying to figure out a way to say whatever it was that Faith was unknowingly prodding for.

"Did…when was the first dream you remember having with me in it?" Buffy asked, then, off of Faith's suggestive look, "Slayer-type dream, cryptic and the like."

Faith became serious and thought for moment, "When you came into the dream I was having about Germany."

"Really? Never before? Not even…" Buffy trailed off, a shadow crossing her face.

"What?" Faith asked before sensing a vampire. Turning her head, Faith saw Spike leaning on the doorframe that led to Xander's workshop.

"Didn't mean to listen in," Spike began, and the anger boiling within Faith slowly began to rise.

A soft hand on her forearm let Faith know that Buffy could tell what she was feeling and shook her head slightly; _you want me to be calm with **this**__guy?_

"What is it Spike?" Buffy asked calmly, and Faith suddenly felt the tension in the hand gripping her forearm.

"I just," Spike trailed off, glancing from Buffy to Faith before refocusing on the blonde Slayer, "I didn't mean to be…"

"All judgmental and Jump-to-Conclusions-Guy?" Buffy supplied quickly when he trailed off.

Spike swallowed and glanced at Faith before nodding, "Yeah. Can… can we talk?"

Buffy looked up at Faith for confirmation, and Faith smiled gently, inwardly grateful for the inclusion in the decision, "Go. We can talk later," Faith murmured before leaning in and placing a gentle kiss on the blonde's mouth.

Buffy lifted her hand to cup Faith's jaw, her thumb brushing across her cheek as the brunette pulled away slowly. A last look at the peroxide blonde, whose jaw had gone slack, and Faith brushed past the older slayer, willing herself to appear cool and collected as she made her way to the stairwell. Claiming the stairs two at a time, Faith barely heard Buffy state in a clipped tone, "Talk," before she exited into the dining room. Feeling the need for fresh air, Faith strode past Giles, Willow and Dawn; the only ones left at the table, and slid open the door. Collapsing on the top step at the end of the patio, Faith let out a ragged sigh and leaned back on her hands. Hearing the door behind her slide open and shut again, Faith waited to see who came out.

"Hey," Dawn's voice floated down to her, and Faith glanced up to watch as Dawn seated herself, leaning forward to rest her head on crossed arms on top of her knees.

"Hey back," Faith replied before looking out into the backyard.

Silence stretched comfortably between the pair for a few minutes as they both gazed into the serene woods. It wasn't until Dawn shifted her weight to lean backwards onto the patio that Faith looked at her again.

"What's the sitch lil' D?" Faith asked, cracking a grin after Dawn's eye roll from the nickname.

"Just when I think you might've matured…" Dawn trailed off, shaking her head, smiling. "How are you?"

Faith eyed the younger Summers woman, thinking of how to answer the question, "Five by five."

Dawn turned to look Faith dead on, an eyebrow quirked in amusement, "Really?"

Faith felt the cocky grin slip into place, "Yeah, you want details on the how and why? 'Cause I don't think big sis would like me dishing those out."

"Ugh, Faith, please," Dawn frowned, waving the rogue slayer into silence, "She's my sister for God sakes. I _never_ want those details."

Faith laugh out a raspy laugh and broke the eye contact, looking out into the backyard once again.

"Seriously though," Dawn cut in.

Faith looked back at the brunette, her browed furrowed.

"I haven't seen you smoke in a while," Dawn continued, and Faith nodded in understanding.

"Early April," Faith stated quietly.

Dawn looked a question at her, and Faith continued.

"The last cigarette I lit up was in early April. I watched it burn, right down to my fingers," Faith explained, her voice growling slightly at the low volume of her words.

"Almost a month ago?" Dawn asked incredulously.

Faith nodded, "Yeah. Buffy began to take the lead right around that time. She took initiative."

"Wasn't that like, right before all the shit began to go down, in Forest Hills and stuff?" Off of Faith's nod, "Wow. Recent."

"Sorta," Faith shrugged. "It ain't easy but…" Faith sighed and ran a hand through her wavy hair, "She makes it easier."

Dawn nodded, "I get that."

"You do?" Faith knitted her brows together.

Dawn glanced over at her and shrugged, "Yeah." Sighing, Dawn dipped her head forward and rubbed the back of her neck with her hand, "She's my sister, Faith. As much as we might want to kill each other at times…" Faith snorted, "I love her. She makes living and surviving easier."

"She makes it worth it," Faith murmured, the commonality between them suddenly apparent.

"Yeah." Dawn stated quietly, "I'm a part of her, more than any normal sister relationship. I live for her…"

"And because of her," Faith finished. The pair sat silently for a moment, taking in their new understanding of one another, "Fuck."

Dawn chuckled, "She's saved the world more times than any single human being; if she hadn't been here, how would we know that we'd be here?"

"Luck?" Faith asked rhetorically, gaining a smack on her arm.

"I'm not saying we owe our lives to her, but, she definitely has helped in their continued existence," Dawn finished.

Faith placed her elbow on her knee and rested her chin on the top of her fist, "Quite the mind fuck."

"Philosophical mind fuck." Dawn agreed with a short nod.

"Was there even a point to this?" Faith turned to look over at Dawn, a glimmer of humor in her eyes.

Dawn shrugged, "Maybe. Maybe not. Tangents-R-Us."

"Def," Faith accepted the response before sighing and standing with a tired groan. "C'mon Brat, let's head in before Giles notices that our heads have grown exponentially or some shit like that."

Dawn laughed as she stood, only to stop suddenly when she walked into Faith.

"What'd you wanna talk to me about before I crashed from the Kartuk?"

Dawn thought for a moment before understanding what Faith was asking, "You just remembered that?"

Faith gave her a look but didn't respond.

"I wanted to ask you about the smoking actually, that's why I wandered out now," Dawn answered.

Faith nodded and turned to continue into the house, leaving Dawn to play catch-up as she made it to the door before Dawn started walking. _After that conversation, I could seriously go for a smoke_, Faith thought, shaking her head as she headed into the kitchen.

* * *

Faith's eyes were steadily following the curve of her lover's hips as they swayed with every resolute step she took upon entering the Pit. As the days had crawled by and preparations were being made, both women were too exhausted to do anything aside from crawling into bed and sleeping. Now though, as the last day was ticking down before all hell attempted to break loose, Faith felt the exhaustion slip from her weary bones, as a flammable cocktail of anticipation, desire and tension seeped through her veins like a long pull on a cigarette. The effects were adverse to that of a cigarette however, and Faith shifted her feet upon seeing Buffy looking at her, feeling her gaze; her body kicking everything up a notch as she felt herself get wet from the smoldering look Buffy leveled at her, telling her everything the blonde was thinking in that moment.

_Fuck. I'm not gonna get any sleep tonight,_ Faith thought, a wicked grin spreading across her face. When Buffy broke the gaze, her twinkling eyes darkening at Faith to reply to something Willow was saying to her as they came closer, Faith moved forward and took a seat on the edge of the Pit. Ken, Vi and Rona making room for her.

"Do you know how long this is gonna take? I've got brownies baking in the oven," Vi asked as Faith settled in to her seat.

Faith grinned, "No idea, but you're sharing now."

"Didn't we go over the plan like three days ago?" Tracy asked, leaning forward, her elbows on her knees to look around Rona at Faith.

The other women smirked and shook their heads, and Faith could empathize with them, _newbie_.

"That was more of an…outline," Kennedy explained, taking pity on the younger woman, "This is the actual plan."

Rona began coughing and Faith slapped a hand on her back when the word "speech" was coughed out.

"Is everyone here?" Willow broke the quiet chattering, and a hush fell over the room as all eyes turned to the red head.

"Yeah, I was the last one in," Buffy answered, taking a seat beside Giles as Willow swept her skirt forward under her thighs and sat down on the blonde's other side.

"Okay then, I guess we can get started," Willow began, "There will be serious magicks going on between the Coven and myself, as well as the Kartuk's shamans- who will probably have a few not in on the ritual, just to be able to attack any of you or us. So be aware; if anyone ends up having something happen to them, the key point is to pull them back and re-team with others."

"By the re-teaming," Buffy began once Willow finished speaking, "We mean to say that this entire fight could go poorly if anyone decides to be all _Top Gun_ and pull a maverick. Start in pairs. No one goes into or stays in a fight by themselves. Outside of Sandra- who will be the only Slayer to be aiding in protecting the Coven and Willow- all the other slayers here will pair up with one another. Pick someone you trust and have a grasp of their fighting style. They will be the best partner to have by your side in the fight." As Buffy finished, her eyes, which had been moving through the group of women, landed on Faith, who nodded almost imperceptibly.

"What's everyone else doing? So we know where people will be in case of a Plan B," Kennedy piped up.

"Along with Sandra, Dawn, Xander, Andrew and Giles will be backing up the Coven, for their various attributes. Angel and Spike are exclusively focused on dealing with any demons that make it through the Hellmouth. The slayers, as I said, will be focused on the Kartuk. Get their numbers down far enough, and the group can split up to help the other factions." Buffy explained before falling silent as Giles began to speak.

"The slayers will be split into two flanks to attack from two sides, which will allow for the greatest amount of confusion. The Kartuk, as several of the women here have experienced firsthand, are a demon short in stature, built for brute force. The best weaponry against them are any variety of bladed weapons. Over the past few months, I have been in talks with a few associates for a protective type of armor that would reduce the effect of the blows a Kartuk could land on any one of you. Both Faith and Buffy have been prime examples of the danger these demons pose to any of you in large numbers. I hadn't brought this up to anyone before now, because I wanted to see what all of you thought; would any of you choose to wear this protective gear?"

"Is this a uniform?" Rona asked skeptically.

"Like the X-men?" Andrew asked with hopefulness.

"Um, well, not exactly." Giles pulled his glasses off and proceeded to clean them.

"What is it, plated armor around a body hugging suit to provide both maximum comfort, mobility and protection?" Faith asked, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

Giles stopped cleaning his glasses and looked up at the dark slayer with surprise.

"Get out, seriously? I got it in one?" Faith leaned forward, incredulous. "Go me."

"How…" Xander began, trailing off.

"So not the issue right now," Buffy cut in, exasperated, but Faith caught the amused glint in her eyes, "Has it been tested?"

"Yes it has, I only brought it up because it seemed that…"

"I'm not against anything that could help us, Giles," Buffy smiled gently, rebuffing his unnecessary apology. Then, to the group, "Anyone that is interested, see Giles afterwards, and we'll go from there." After looking around for moment, and seeing that no one else had something to add, Buffy slapped her hands onto her thighs, "Well, I'd like everyone up and ready to head out by 4:30. I would tell everyone to try and get some rest, but I know from personal experience that that is a hollow request. Just keep the volume down for the younger women in the house, as well as anyone who actually chooses to try to sleep."

The last comment was made with a smirk, and the entire group were all knowingly grinning. Faith was remembering the last apocalypse she had spent around Buffy, remembering the game of Dungeons and Dragons that had been played into the wee hours of the morning- heard only by the enhanced hearing she and Buffy had then been privy to by themselves. Now, almost every female in the entire mansion had that type of hearing, and Buffy's comment, will made glibly, actually conveyed a more serious point. As the group began to filter out, or crowd around Giles, Faith watched Buffy pull back and away from the group, moving over to the exercise equipment, where T'wanii was leaning against it. Faith didn't remember seeing or hearing him come in, and shook her head at her complete tunnel vision.

"Hey Faith!" At her name, Faith turned to see Aggie looking at her, Vi and Rona flanking her.

"Yeah?"

"Wanna hit up _Halo 3_?"

Faith smirked, "Don't you know it," She began, only to feel a tingle go through the slayer connection, "Maybe tomorrow night."

"You mean, _after_ the apocalypse? Ha. Seriously," Kennedy broke in, laughing, "You and most of these people here will be tearing up a dance floor somewhere in town, not playing a game of _Halo_."

Faith smirked, "You know me too well."

"I know you, Buffy, myself, and Dawn too well. Everyone else is fair game as to what they do with the after-apocalypse cravings." Faith caught the innuendo but didn't bite; instead, she shook her head, smiling.

"If I remember correctly, Xander likes to sleep, Willow usually wants a drink and Giles spikes his tea with scotch," Faith replied, causing the women to chuckle, only to join in at the scandalized looks both Willow and Giles aimed at her, "What? Don't look so guilty, I remember quite clearly pouring you, G, into your bed!"

Faith could see Giles clench his teeth, the muscle in his cheek flexing, and she flashed him a pair of dimples before winking. Glancing at Willow, Faith saw that the redhead had given up and was focusing on something Xander was saying instead- pointedly not looking in her direction. Refocusing on Kennedy and the other women, Faith shrugged, "I think you'll be too busy trying to keep your own volume down to worry about me keeping mine down."

Kennedy chuckled, shaking her head, but didn't reply.

Faith smirked before nodding at Vi and Rona and turning to walk towards where Buffy and T'wanii were still talking.

"…I have no problem with it." Faith came within earshot at the second part of Buffy's sentence, and only began to grasp the point of the conversation at T'wanii's next statement.

"I thank you, I feel it is a duty to avenge my clan, and being in the fray alongside you and your slayers is perhaps the best for me," T'wanii nodded slightly in acknowledgement of Faith's presence before looking back at the other Chosen One.

Buffy reached out and gently grasped the demon's upper arm, "I won't stand in the way of any extra help we can get, and I hope you can find some sort of peace after tomorrow."

T'wanii's mouth flicked upwards for a moment before blinking and bowing, ending the conversation. Faith turned and watched the demon head out, the last being to leave the room save for Andrew waiting for him at the doorway.

"Hey," Faith felt her stomach do an uncharacteristic flip at the huskiness of the voice, and turned on her heel to drink in the sight of Buffy now sitting on the horse, leaning back slightly.

"Hey yourself," Faith replied, her own voice drawling as she moved forward and eased the blonde's legs apart and stepped between them, destroying any sense of personal space.

Buffy closed her eyes, her lips parting to breathe through them, and leaned forward, pressing her forehead against Faith's. Whispering, Buffy asked, "Ever think about the alternative uses of the pommel horse?"

Faith allowed a dimple to appear as she smirked, "Mmm, now I am. Then again, you still haven't learned all the pleasure that comes with the pain of fucking against a brick wall."

Buffy shuddered and leaned in to capture Faith's lips in an open kiss. Faith groaned as Buffy merely teased her, sucking her bottom lip into her mouth and pulling away slowly, releasing Faith from the kiss. Placing her hands on the sides of the blonde's thighs, Faith ground her body into Buffy's precariously perched one. Buffy exhaled loudly, her eyes falling shut, before placing her hands on Faith's shoulders and gently, yet firmly, pushing her away. Before Faith could react, Buffy had slid off of the horse and was moving past her, making sure her body brushed up against Faith's heated body in all the right ways.

Faith snapped her head around and leaned back against the horse, "Leaving so soon?"

Buffy glanced over her shoulder, "Need to eat."

"Why leave then?" Faith shot back, a grin on her face.

At that, Buffy stopped and turned around, her eyes moving slowly over Faith's entire body. Faith licked her lips, feeling her heart speed up at the thorough once-over she was being given before grinning again as Buffy started walking back to her quickly.

Faith didn't have time to react as Buffy simultaneously leaned into her personal space and grabbed the crotch of her jeans. Gasping, Faith shuddered, and closed her eyes to the assault before opening them to curious green eyes. Buffy cocked her head to one side, and pushed her palm against the ridge directly over Faith's clit, causing Faith to bite her lip, refusing to break eye contact. Adding more pressure with her fingers against the heat seeping through Faith's jeans, Buffy allowed a playful smirk to appear before leaning in and capturing Faith's lips, her tongue easily making its way into Faith's willing mouth. Groaning under the onslaught, Faith stood up fully, pressing her body up against Buffy's, capturing the blonde's hand between them. Breaking the kiss, Faith gasped, her eyes still closed as Buffy lowered her mouth to attack her neck, her free hand landing on Faith's hip and forcefully pushing her body back against the horse. _Fuck, maybe we won't make it out of here._

No sooner did the thought appear than Buffy released Faith completely from her hands and mouth, backing up a whole foot to be able to take in the slowly recovering brunette. Faith, for what she was worth, was shocked at the aggressive streak Buffy had just exhibited; and, if the dark green eyes told her anything, the blonde enjoyed it just as much as she did. Licking her lips slowly, enjoying watching Buffy follow her tongue, Faith took a final deep breath and stood up, straightening her shirt out.

"Seems someone isn't content with always being a bottom," Faith grinned at Buffy, winking as she moved back into Buffy's personal space, intent on coming out on top despite her recent loss of control under the other woman's ministrations.

"Guess not," Buffy replied, leaning into Faith, who leaned her head down to nip at the blonde's ear.

At the shudder that ran through the shorter woman's body, Faith flicked her tongue out, lightly tracing the outer curve of her ear, "Good."

With that food for thought, Faith pulled back and brushed past Buffy, satisfied that she was not the only one left hot and bothered. Turning when she made it to the doors, Faith saw that Buffy had merely turned around to watch her, but hadn't moved to follow yet.

"Coming?" Faith asked, her eyebrow arched, a lascivious smile spread across her features.

"Not soon enough," Buffy returned, grinning at Faith's mildly surprised look before moving to catch up with her.

* * *

Faith was leaning over the edge of the couch, a hand holding her face up, as she watched Kennedy bash Vi to death in _Halo 3_.

"Seriously Vi, stop shooting and start bashing," Rona grumbled.

"I'm better at shooting!" Vi shot back.

"News flash:" Faith interrupted, "You definitely aren't."

"It's sad, you know? I'm kicking your asses, and you're teamed up against me," Kennedy leaned back; the game paused for the moment.

"Faith, you sure you don't wanna join?" Vi asked again.

"For the fourth time, no." Faith replied, sitting up straighter and dropping her hand.

"Then what's with the hanging?" Kennedy asked.

Faith sighed, "B's bent on cooking pasta. I fear slightly for the kitchenware, but it's not my food."

The women laughed, before Rona glanced over her shoulder from her position on the floor to look at Faith, "So where's everyone at anyway?"

"Well, I know that Trey is playing pool with Spike downstairs; probably meanin' Angel's down there as well. Giles got dragged into another Dungeons and Dragons rematch with Andrew, Dan and Xander; who, I presume is soon to be distracted by Sandra as soon as she finishes tallying her sheet in the trauma ward. They're all back in the dining room, while any other slayers are probably attempting to sleep."

"What about Dawn?" Vi asked, only to have Kennedy snort at her, "What?"

"She's with Peter," Faith stated simply, "Which reminds me, Ken, why aren't you distracting Red yet?"

Kennedy shrugged, "She wanted to go over a few last minute things with the Coven before sleep. And by 'sleep' she literally means sleep."

Faith arched an eyebrow, "Are you seriously gonna just let her _sleep_?"

Kennedy looked over at Faith, "Look you're talking about a very powerful Wicca. I'd rather let her get some sleep rather than exhaust her when she needs to focus tomorrow. You know Will; she's a nervous wreck before any apocalypse, especially when she has a pivotal role in stopping it. It was her one request to me."

Faith nodded, she had only been through one aborted apocalypse with the witch, but she knew Willow's personality well enough to grasp what Kennedy was telling her, "So this is how you decided to get through the night?" Faith gestured to the paused _Halo_ game.

Kennedy grinned, "Well, part of it. Will did request to be woken up extra early."

Faith chuckled, "What, gonna try to calm her pre-apocalypse nerves?"

"It's a plan that has never ceased to be a success," Kennedy replied before turning back to the game.

Faith felt a quiver through her connection with Buffy and looked over her shoulder to the entrance of the living room across from the dining room. Back lit by the dining room lights, Buffy leaned against the door frame, her arms crossed under her chest. The sound of a shotgun firing before bashing and connecting with its target jolted Faith to glance at the TV and then at Kennedy, who gave Faith a sidelong glance and arched an eyebrow before rolling her eyes and shaking her head, refocusing on the game. Faith took that as her cue to leave and stood from her seat, stretching her arms above her head, a hand grasping a wrist and pulling to one side. The snort from Kennedy caused Faith to drop her arms, as the brunette slayer knew Faith's seductive game, and mocked it with just that one sound. Swatting Kennedy lightly in the arm, Faith moved around the couch and over to Buffy, who stood up straight and turned to walk into the kitchen, followed closely by Faith.

Arriving in the kitchen, Faith leaned her hip on the side of the counter, crossing her arms and watching Buffy move around the island, an amused expression on her features.

"What, boiling noodles took too long?" Faith jeered lightly.

Buffy glanced over her shoulder at the brunette, "Something like that." Turning back around, Buffy pulled open the microwave and pulled out a dish of the mashed potatoes that Xander had made the night before.

Faith's eyes narrowed as Buffy lifted a forkful of the steaming potatoes to her lips and blew on them before putting the food in her mouth and slowly sliding the fork back out between her lips. Flicking her gaze up to Buffy's eyes, Faith was surprised to see the green orbs watching her for her reaction. Licking her lips, Faith pushed herself from the counter and slowly walked around the island towards the doorway leading to the stairs. Stopping in the archway, Faith glanced back over at the blonde.

"I'm going upstairs," Faith informed her, her gaze dropping once again down the length of the smaller woman's body before flicking back up to meet dark green eyes, "Maybe I'll defy precedence for the night before an apocalypse an get some shuteye. Considering you're just hungry for food."

At that, Faith smirked and exited, hearing Buffy begin to scarf down the potatoes. _No rush B, I can take all night._

* * *

_Faith was leaning on her thigh, her foot on the edge of the roof, a pair of night vision binoculars held to her face as she scanned the ground below. The sweltering heat even in the night was causing sweat the make tracks down her skin, making semi-clean trails through the layer of dust on her body. Of everything she had heard about South Africa- uncomfortably hot was not one of them. Despite the heat, Faith still needed to try to remain hidden, and wore a pair of black pants, boots and a black t-shirt, her wavy hair pulled back into a thick ponytail._

_Catching a glimmer of movement, Faith zoomed in to make certain of what she saw. When a demon lumbered out of the shadows into the moonlight, followed closely by eight other demons, two of which carried bound humans over their shoulders, Faith sighed and lowered her binoculars. 'This is gonna be a long night.' Faith thought, unslinging her bow and pulling an arrow from her quiver. Notching it, Faith pulled the string taut. A local informant had given her the arrows, telling her that they were laced with a poison that was fatal to the breed of demons on the street below. Ignoring the feeling of déjà vu, Faith waited until she saw a glimmer of movement in the moonlight before releasing the arrow._

_A growl of pain, followed by the sound of the demons crying out in confusion and anger caused her to smile as she notched another arrow, 'Just another Tuesday night," Faith mused as she pulled the second arrow back, "They always seem to be the longest ones." Releasing the arrow, Faith exhaled as another demon screamed out in pain and fell._

* * *

Faith had pushed the door back behind her with her fingertips upon entering the bedroom, leaving it slightly open. Moving towards the bookcase, Faith pulled a book out and flipped it open, scanning it while waiting for Buffy to finally catch up- _hopefully without choking on food to get here_, Faith thought sighing quietly as she turned the page of the hardcover to read the title page, _Tomorrow, When The War Began_. _They got that right, _Faith mused before shutting the book and replacing it at the beginning of the series that ran after it. _You'd never know she read to listen to her._ Faith shook her head and turned, her gaze falling to the bed before the sound of rapid footfalls made her turn her head over her shoulder to watch Buffy enter their bedroom and shut the door behind her, leaning back against it as she did so.

Faith watched Buffy as the blonde regarded her silently for a moment, and took the time to turn her body to fully face the other woman. At this shift of movement, Buffy pushed herself from the door and closed the distance between the two of them in two strides, her hands coming up to cup Faith's face, pulling her down to her mouth. Faith leaned down into the blonde, a shiver shooting through her body at the aggressiveness being exhibited. Faith was too focused on keeping up with the tongue swirling around in her mouth to realize that Buffy was slowly pushing her backwards. Grunting when her back hit the bookcase, causing it to shake, Faith broke the kiss to exhale, lifting her face up to breath, only to groan as Buffy lowered her lips to assault her neck.

"God, B…" Faith trailed off, "You'd think there wasn't gonna be a tomorrow."

At this, Buffy stopped and pulled back slightly, just enough to be able to look Faith in the eyes, yet still let her breath tickle the brunette's skin, and quietly stated, "I don't wanna think about tomorrow."

Faith nodded mutely, understanding the unspoken request, and quickly dropped her head to capture Buffy's lips, her tongue trailing along Buffy's lower lip, seeking almost instant access to the hot mouth. Sighing against her mouth, Buffy shifted her hands, one holding a handful of brown hair against the back of Faith's head, the other left to its own devices as it trailed down Faith's body. Jerking her hips against Buffy's as the small hand cupped her breast, Faith spun the smaller woman around and pushed her against the bookcase. Exhaling against Faith's mouth, Buffy pressed her body up against Faith, who slipped her hands down to shorter woman's hips, who responded by hopping up, and Faith easily slid her hands under her thighs to hold the blonde up. Pressing Buffy's back solidly against the bookcase, causing it to rattle as their weight pressed it against the wall, Faith felt nimble fingers make their way to the hem of her shirt and inhaled sharply as nails dragged up her back as the shirt came up under Buffy's arms. Shifting her mouth to land a kiss on Buffy's jaw before dropping to her neck, Faith licked the other woman's pulse point before beginning to suck on it, smiling when Buffy threw her head back and unashamedly moaned, her hips jerking against Faith's, making her falter for a second.

"Faith, bed," Buffy panted into Faith's ear, causing the brunette to shudder.

Complying, Faith pulled away from the bookcase and turned around towards the bed, making her way quickly and dropping Buffy to the mattress, following her down on top of her. Leaning slightly over Buffy, Faith angled her head down, capturing the shorter woman's mouth in an open-mouthed kiss as she felt her shirt being pulled up her back and only broke the kiss to allow it to be pulled over her head and tossed carelessly to the ground. Leaning back down, Faith nipped at Buffy's jaw, smiling against her soft skin as she felt the clasp on her bra deftly flicked open, and rose up on her hands over the other woman to allow the bra to slide down her arms to land on top of Buffy, whose hungry eyes took in every newly bared inch of skin. Feeling her panties getting wetter, Faith moved a hand down to the hem of Buffy's shirt, pushing it up to the bottom of the blonde's bra, and, after sparing a glance, shifted down to land a kiss on the taut skin, the muscles flexing beneath the skin at the onslaught. Pushing the shirt up, Faith allowed Buffy to pull it over her own head before she bit the skin of her bellybutton, causing the blonde to gasp and arch her back, giving Faith the chance to slide a hand beneath her and unclasp her bra, pulling it off in one quick motion.

Moving up slowly, Faith's free hand found Buffy's, interweaving their fingers as she slowly moved back up the blonde's body. Nipping at the underside of one breast, Faith felt Buffy's breath hitch before flicking her tongue out and over a pert nipple. Breathing hot air over it, Faith finally succumbed and closed her mouth around the nipple, her hand sliding out of Buffy's grip and cupping the other breast. Arching up, Buffy snaked her hand into Faith's hair.

"Fuck," Buffy hissed, and Faith felt her body quiver at the neediness in the other woman's voice.

Releasing the hard bud from her mouth, Faith looked up over the rapidly moving chest at a pair of dark green eyes. _Fuck_. In an instant, Faith was on her back, and Buffy stretched her body out over the length of her body, one leg dropping down in between Faith's two. Pushing her thigh against Faith's body, Faith saw Buffy's dilated eyes delight in watching her arch in response. Gulping in a breath of air, Faith had the fleeting thought, _I have never felt like I'm trying to keep up before_. Her thoughts dissolved as she became aware of nimble fingers hooking in her sports shorts and pulling them down, her panties sliding with them. After kicking them off once they were far enough down, Faith felt her jaw drop slightly when Buffy rose up on her knees and slowly- dangerously so- took off her own shorts, her panties going with them. Breathing in the musky scent, Faith's eyes fell shut when Buffy settled herself in between her legs, and nearly jumped when she felt a nip on the inside of her thigh.

Opening her eyes, Faith looked down with lidded eyes at the blonde, whose almost wicked smile caused Faith to groan even before she felt the flat of her tongue drag over her clit.

"Fuck," Faith breathed, clenching the sheets in her hands.

With the tentative swipe of a tongue from her entrance to her clit, Faith threw her head back, moaning, her back arching in pleasure. It was then that lips took hold of her clit as two fingers slide into her that left her gasping, never feeling so at a loss of control. To her credit, Buffy never let up, her goal seemed to be to push Faith over the edge as powerfully and quickly as possible. Tumbling through her orgasm, Faith felt the aftershocks fluttering through her as Buffy plunged her tongue inside of her, giving her no time to recover.

"B-Buffy, oh…god, fuck," Faith grunted, moving a hand down to tangle in the blonde locks.

Writhing beneath a strong hand on her hip, holding her down gently, Faith jerked her hips as Buffy flicked a thumb over her tender clit, sending her quickly into another orgasm. Reaching down as she felt Buffy's tongue licking her clean, Faith dragged her nails along slender shoulders, conveying her need as Buffy finally gave in and moved back up her body. Pulling her down, Faith captured Buffy's mouth, a hand cupping her cheek; her thumb brushing along a cheekbone, a kiss mixed with tenderness and sated desire. Rolling them over, Faith broke the kiss and looked down at Buffy. The blonde's eyes were dark and dilated, her breath rapid, her mouth open slightly with swollen lips from kissing.

Nipping playfully at Buffy's bottom lip, Faith smiled when the blonde groaned, "My turn."

She had plans to not only make Buffy forget that there was an apocalypse in less than six hours, but also to forget her own name and maybe even the English language all together. _High goals make things so much more fun._


	25. Dissonance

"God, hadn't we done enough? Hadn't we gone for it, time and time again? Hadn't we stared death right in the face and felt its cold fingers tightening its grip on the backs of our necks? What would satisfy them? Did we have to die before they'd say, 'Ok, that'll do, you can have the rest of the war off?'" John Marsden (_Darkness Be My Friend_)  
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Faith slammed her hand down on the alarm clock, effectively silencing its shrill noise and scattering broken pieces across the night table.

"Was it evil?" Buffy mumbled against Faith's neck.

"Yes," Faith replied, her voice rough from sleep.

"That's the fourth one you've broken since February."

"Side effect of disturbing my sleep."

Buffy lifted her head up at this, a sly smile spreading across her features. Catching Faiths eye, "What about when I disturb your sleep?"

"That's a welcome disturbance," Faith answered, lifting her head to kiss the blonde gently.

The buzz of a text message sent Faith's phone crawling across the night table, bumping into the remains of the clock as it went. Dropping her head back to the pillow, Faith groaned and blindly reached out her arm to grasp the small phone as Buffy rolled away from her and out of the bed. Flipping open the phone, Faith rolled her eyes and chuckled before snapping it shut and getting out of the bed to walk over to the dresser.

"What's funny?" Buffy asked through the slightly open bathroom door.

"Xander. He says thanks for not letting him get any sleep last night," Faith replied with a shake of her head.

"And Sandra?" Buffy prodded, the sound of the toilet flushing being covered by the faucet.

Pulling out a bra and panties, Faith began to dress, "Apparently the slayer in her crashed post-humpage and was out cold. T-shirt with or without jacket?"

Buffy popped her head out of the bathroom, brushing her teeth. Faith stood with her jeans on but unzipped, her black shirt decorated with slashes of white pulled halfway down. Faith smirked as she saw Buffy's eyes darken slightly upon seeing her appearance.

"Wif. It chilly," Buffy replied around the toothbrush.

Faith nodded and finished pulling down her shirt. Sitting on the edge of the bed, Faith pulled on her boots before making her way to the bathroom. Buffy exited as she entered, her hair pulled up into a simple bun, minimal make-up applied to her face. Watching the nude back of the smaller woman as she walked to the dresser, Faith shut the door to get ready.  
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Faith yawned before shifting suddenly as Kennedy shoved her feet off the edge of the last free chair in the kitchen. Her boots swung heavily down and Faith reacted quickly, shifting upwards in order to stop the swing and carefully placing her feet on the floor. It was the most action of the morning as of yet. Most of the slayers were quietly milling about, in their own zones, a range of drinks and foods in front of them. Faith saw Willow perched on a high chair and frowned, thinking the normally twitchy witch had chosen a poor seat, _knowing her; shell fall off the damn thing in minutes._ The normally perky redhead had dark bags under her eyes, and a look about her of tired readiness. _Boy, do the years drag us with this shit, tho could be 'cause she was getting it on when she coulda been sleepin'._ As if knowing her thoughts, Kennedy elbowed her in the upper arm, and Faith flinched, her attention refocusing on the brunette.

"Don't scrutinize her, she doesn't need it," Kennedy mumbled quietly.

"Dude, if I know one thing about Red..."

"You don't." _Ouch._ Kennedy sighed, "Sorry, I don't mean to be a bitch."

"But you so obviously are, and considering the morning we have ahead of us, kinda don't wanna be fighting ya and the hairy big bads," Faith shot back quietly.

Kennedy nodded mutely, flicking her eyes away to glance at Willow and then down to the table top. Faith watched her before sighing and scratching her chin.

"Whats the sitch with Red?" Faith asked.

Kennedy glanced over at her in alarm before getting up and exiting into the back hall by the garage. Faith waited a moment before slowly rising and exiting behind her, her eyes catching Buffy's curious green ones on her way out. Shaking her head at the silent question in the blonde's eyes, Faith turned and went down the hall, following Kennedy into the bathroom.

"Ken, what's the deal?" Faith asked, leaning against the wall and crossing her arms after shutting the door.

Kennedy looked up from her seat on the sink top, "I asked her if she would be my partner this morning."

Faith swallowed, _oh. Huh._ Off of Faith's silence, Kennedy continued,

"She didn't say anything back yet. She told me to wait til after today. Then she did some ramble about the Scoobies having a history of popping the question before the apocalypse."

_Wait, what?_ "What?" Faith's thoughts mirrored her inner confusion.

Kennedy sighed, running a hand through her hair, "She told me to ask again later on. Afterwards."

"That doesn't seem entirely unreasonable," Faith murmured, the topic itself foreign territory for her, and she shifted slightly against the wall at it.

Kennedy chuckled mirthlessly, "Yeah, but it could just be her way of avoiding an answer. Of saying no. I just don't think that she should look at Buffy and Xander's histories as models to learn from."

"What models? What do you mean?" Faith asked, confused.

Kennedy waved her hand, "It doesn,t really matter now," _it does if you don't know anything about it!_ Faith thought with frustration, "We're both just scatter-brained right now, and we can't afford to be."

_Note to self, ask Buffy about pre-apoc question poppage,_ Faith thought before standing up straight, "Dude, just go back out there, confident, take her hand and bring her in here. Don't talk to her, ignore any questions. Kiss the living fuck out of her."

"That's your solution?" Kennedy asked, her eyebrows shooting up.

Faith grinned crookedly and shrugged, "Well yeah. Always works. Plus, you could always mention something about not worrying about you two and focusing on the Big Bads. Make it sound good. I dunno, whatever works."

Kennedy eyed Faith for a moment, "Has potential."

Faith nodded and grinned again, "Never known a time when it didn't. Now get with the sucking face." Faith slapped Kennedy on the thigh as she slid off of the counter and followed her out of the bathroom.

Walking past the dining room entrance as Kennedy walked into it, Faith saw Kennedy walk directly to Willow before passing the doorframe and losing sight of them. Sighing, Faith slipped into Andrew's study and shut the door as she heard Willow asking where Kennedy was taking her as they walked down the hall. _Go get 'er Tiger._ Faith chuckled and slumped onto the couch, throwing her boots over one arm and resting her head snugly on a pillow at the other end. Closing her eyes, Faith felt her body relaxing instantly, craving any extra ounce of sleep she could get. When she began adjusting to the silence of the room, the hushed sound of a couple of voices making their way through the cracked door between the two studies caught her attention. Furrowing her brow, Faith focused on the voices, and began to recognize the cadence of their speech. Swinging her feet down, Faith moved to the door, and heard the distinct voices of Buffy and Angel speaking quietly in the room.

"...and that's all we can bet on right now," Angel's voice murmured softly.

"Great, so we have a covered sunrise, but we don't know for how long. Can you make sure there are heavy fire blankets nearby that you'll be able to get back to if you need to get away during the battle?" Buffy asked back, her tone alert and not conveying any of the tiredness that Faith was still feeling.

"Yeah, lets run the whole length of the sunny cemetery with smoke billowing from us, how ironic to have fire blankets," Spike muttered.

"Do you have a better idea, Spike?" Angel asked coolly.

The scrape of a boot on the floor was all that was heard for a response.

"So we'll just make sure to bring the blankets from the basement before we leave. Willow already put a spell on the windows of the vehicle you'll be in to protect you from the sun once you're inside, so don't worry about that," Buffy continued, her tone now a mixture of frustration and business, "Was there anything else that we've forgotten?"

The room was silent a moment before Angel spoke, "No, I don't think so."

"Ok, then were good. Wheels up in 30 minutes." At that, Buffy exited the office, and Faith heard Spike grumble about needing a cigarette before he too left.

"Did you want something Faith?" Angel asked, his voice louder now after the two people had left him alone in Willow's study.

Faith sighed quietly and pulled the door open enough to move into the doorway and lean against the frame, "You caught me, big guy."

Angel regarded the dark slayer for a moment, and Faith felt a bit like he was studying her the way Angelus would study his victims, if only to grasp a better understanding of what was going through her mind at that moment. Faith knew all too well how capable Angel was at reading people- considering his years of sadistic practice- but she also knew he was not using it with anything other than good intentions. This vampire, the outcome of a young, drunken night of revelry-turned siring, a vampire constantly struggling with the inner battle of the weak man, the powerful demon, and the unrelenting soul, was perhaps the only being living and non who truly understood her. Angel understood the inner struggle, the guilt over past deeds, and the all-consuming and never-ending road to redemption, where they would never know if they would ever make it, but refused to give up anyway. _That doesn't mean it ain't hard_, Faith thought. Buffy would never fully understand Faith, Faith had learned it years ago, and knew it every day. That didn't mean that she refused to let her try. But Angel - he _got_ her - and that was why she leaned on the door frame and let him study her in silence.

"What do you think you'll do after this, Faith?" Angel finally asked, his face giving no clue as to whether he was satisfied with what he saw when looking at the brunette.

Faith was taken aback by the question, but recovered quickly, remaining nonchalant, "Dunno, really. Vacation? Somewhere without a Hellmouth, preferably."

The corners of Angel's mouth twitched upwards for a moment before he became serious again, and asked, "I mean, are you going to stay here? Or do you think you need to keep on your own?"

Faith sighed, knowing the true, unspoken questions, _Are you ready for all that staying entails? Work with a team? Can you stay with solidarity? With loyalty? Follow rules? Love her and not hurt her?_

"I'm not perfect, yunno?" Faith began, uncrossing her arms and shoving them in her pants pockets with a visible sense of discomfort, "But Ill try."

Angel nodded, that's all anyone can ever ask from people like them.

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Faith shut the garage door leading to the rest of the house, the garage was lit up, the big doors open, the vehicles all moved out to the driveway in a single file. The entire group of Slayers and brave humans were fanned out in the garage, with Buffy, Willow and Giles in the front. A good number of the woman had on skin-tight black outfits, various personal items attached to make them their own, a button here, an armband there.

"If you plan on panicking, do it now, the bathroom is right through that door," Buffy informed the group, her eyes flicking around, "We'll be arriving in cars; Angel and Spike are already there with the Coven."

"Faith will take point, Kennedy will take the rear," Giles continued, "There is to be as much silence as possible once we enter the woods, as the large number of people we have will possibly already make too much noise. To help lessen that possibility, once further in the woods, fan out with your pair next to you."

"What? No further power-point plan?" Rona piped up.

Buffy shot a look her way, and Faith got the feeling this was not the first time Rona attempted to lighten the mood before an apocalypse attempt.

"We don't know what could happen once we get in there, Rona, so no; you'll just have to get along without a guidebook."

Some nervous chuckles broke out then, and Giles decided to step in before anything else started up, "If you need to use the rest rooms, use them now, we'll be leaving in five minutes."

Faith moved away from the door quickly as a rush of four girls came toward it, all vying for the bathroom right inside. Chuckling and shaking her head, Faith moved out into the driveway, immediately walking towards her bike.

"Mind if I hitch a ride with you?" a voice asked behind her, and Faith felt the smirk appear on her face as she turned around to look at the blonde.

"Not a prob, but ya gotta wear the helmet, for safety ya know," Faith replied, pulling an orange helmet out of the backpack she had left on the seat overnight.

Buffy took the helmet and gave it a sour look, "I get the bitch helmet?"

Faith shrugged, "You're heads smaller than mine, B. Deal."

"But I'll look like a traffic cone," Buffy complained, then, "and a round one at that."

Faith grabbed her black helmet from the bag, letting it drop to the ground as she did so. Turning the helmet to face the right way, Faith pulled it on; the visor pushed up, and only then looked at the pouting blonde.

"Wear it, or ride with the groupies, B. Pouting ain't gonna work on this one." Faiths voice was muffled slightly, but stern. Buffy sighed as she pulled the orange helmet on in silence.

Kick starting the bike, Faith felt Buffy climb on, her small arms snaking around the brunettes waist, her small breasts pressing against Faiths back as she leaned against her. Waiting in silence, Faith began to walk forward on the bike when Kennedy honked her horn. Revving it slightly, Faith felt Buffy tighten her grip, and accelerated slowly down the curving driveway. At the end of the drive, Faith stopped and turned her head to the side, "You ready?"

"Uh huh!" The nervous voice floated back and Faith held in a chuckle that she knew the blonde would feel.

Flicking a switch on the underside of her helmet, allowing for conversation to be enabled between her and the rest of the vehicles, Faith heard Dawn and Xander arguing over which CD to listen to.

"Oh for Christs sake! Put in Rob Zombie and make everyone happy!" Faith heard Kennedy holler through the radio.

"Or unhappy," Andrew grumbled.

"Guys!" Faith's voice cut in," Definitely not the time for music fights. Stow it for later. We're going."

"Aye Cap'n! Hear be monsters!" Xander shot over the radio, and Faith smirked before turning her bike down the road and accelerating. _Here we go._

_-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
_

Stopping at the cemetery, Faith killed the ignition, knocked the kickstand down, and got off the bike after Buffy hopped off. Pulling her head free from the helmet, Faith looked over at Buffy, who was fixing her hair slightly, the orange helmet placed on the back of the bike.

"Think you could've gotten us here any faster? Jeez Faith," Buffy commented.

Faith shrugged and put her helmet down, "If they cant keep up, their loss. Besides, kinda wanted a minute alone with ya."

Buffy turned towards her, her face drawn, "Faith..."

"I know, its just, if something happens..." Faith stopped long enough to wave off Buffy's attempt at cutting in, "If something happens...Christ, I don't even know. Sentimental ain't my style."

Buffy chuckled nervously, "It's fine," then, her tone serious, "I know what you mean though," reaching out to touch Faith's face, Buffy murmured softly, "I love you."

As the train of vehicles turned the corner and rumbled towards them, Faith moved her cheek in Buffy's hand, "I love you."

Buffy nodded silently and dropped her hand, moving towards the cars, Faith following a moment later. As the group shut doors and handed out weaponry from the back of the SUV, Faith watched as the young slayers nervously picked their weapons. Seeing Jack looking undecided, Faith placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Pick what you think you can handle. Nothing more."

Nodding with wide eyes, Jack went over to the weapons and picked a six inch knife, attaching the sheath to a thigh strap while Buffy grouped the others together. Faith had a broad sword strapped to her back, and a secondary, four inch knife in a boot holster. The smaller one was a just-in-case weapon, as Faith really hoped she wouldn't have to get that up close and personal to the Kartuk.

"Everyone ready?" Buffy asked, getting a quiet chorus of affirmations. Nodding, Buffy looked to Faith and Giles, "Let's move out."

Walking through the cemetery was strange, as there were no vampires to be seen- as if they knew. Suddenly, Faith's slayer senses went on red alert when a vampire decided to crawl out of his grave, _so totally the worst timing ever, dude_, Faith thought, watching with a smirk as Buffy cleanly knelt down and staked him before her was even fully free from the earth, her deviation from walking beside Faith barely even slowing her down. Faith could hear Xander and Dawn murmuring a game of "I Spy" behind her, and cast a sidelong glance at Buffy, who was smirking and shaking her head, _only the Scoobs would play "I Spy" on the brink of a battle._ As they approached the edges of the forest, Faith saw shadows moving just within it, only to see Angel, Spike, T'wanii, and the Coven waiting for them as they got closer.

Converging together as a large group, everyone moved forward into the woods in silence, the night silent except for the sound of their movement. Once the cemetery could no longer be seen from view, Buffy halted and glanced back at Willow, who nodded and swallowed nervously before squeezing Kennedy's hand gently and moved out of the group, the Coven, Andrew, and Giles following. Dawn placed a hand on Buffy's shoulder, a nervous look in her eyes before dropping her arm and following Xander and Sandra to catch up with the group. Angel and Spike moved away in the opposite direction, both glancing back at Buffy and Faith. Faith caught Angel's glance and nodded imperceptibly, smirking at the glimmer of a smile appearing briefly on his face. Finally, Faith watched as Vi and Rona led Britt, Jess, and Tonya off to the left, shadowing Angel and Spike, leaving Faith, Buffy, Kennedy, Trey, T'wanii, and Jack behind.

Moving further into the woods, Faith felt her connection with Buffy humming, as if the slayer within the short blonde was already anticipating the coming battle. The sound of murmuring reached her ears first, and Faith turned to look at Buffy silently to check that she too could hear it. Nodding in response, Buffy turned to move forward again, gesturing for Kennedy and Jack to move around to her left, while Trey and T'wanii silently moved off to the right. As they began to move, Kennedy stepped on a twig, snapping it with her boot, causing a vine to fly up and make a loud _thwack_ against a nearby tree. Kennedy glanced guiltily at Buffy, who only had time to sigh before a loud roar sounded close by, and Jack cried out as something slammed into her, sending her into a tree trunk. _And we thought this attack would start with finesse_, Faith thought, as her Slayer senses told her to duck.

Hearing an object just clear her head, Faith spun in her crouch and narrowed her eyes on a Kartuk, who was crouched as well, his red eyes glowing at her. Just before launching herself towards him, her ears barely registering the sounds of a small scuffle to her right, Faith was knocked to the ground by a magical blow. Shaking her head as she stood back up, Faith's gaze swept around her, letting the slayer connection within her search for Buffy. Upon finding her helping Jack up, Faith turned to look for any of the Kartuk.

"Where are they?" Kennedy asked, grunting as she stood up from the patch of mud she had landed in.

"They must have retreated to the inner circle. That was the Covens barrier spell. This is our chance, c'mon," Buffy stated, moving forward, "We didn't even get a chance to get into position and they've already been able to retreat to fight with more condensed numbers."

Jogging, Faith caught up with the others, Trey and T'wanii and Kennedy and Jack splitting away quickly as they came nearer to the well-lit clearing, the chanting ever louder. Basically all of the younger slayers had requested the armored outfit, and Faith had to hand it to Jack to be ballsy enough to not wear it despite all the other girls insisting on it. Kennedy was wearing a paintball type body armor hugging her torso, the only older slayer to be wearing some form of protective armor. It was strange what the generational difference could do to the Slayer line. Faith's musings on protection and Slayer gear ended when she approached the edge of the clearing, her connection with Buffy tingling with anticipation. Hearing the sounds of the slayers from the other flank breaking into the clearing with hollers and yells, the Kartuk began roaring, and Faith burst out in unison with Buffy.

Her hand reaching behind her, Faith unsheathed the broad sword which she had strapped to her back, her eyes glancing over to Buffy who held the ever useful scythe. Her eyes alighting on a nearby shaman, Faith started toward him, only to be yanked back by Buffy as a Kartuk barreled by, his horns ripping her jacket as she moved backwards, _Fuck, and this was brand new, too_, Faith narrowed her eyes.

"He totally just got a one-way ticket to hell," Faith growled, hefting the sword up.

As the demon kicked back one of its feet, kicking up dirt, Faith swung the sword around in her hand, bringing it up fully vertical near her body, feeling Buffy nearby her. The demon grunted and rushed them, diving at the last moment, bypassing Faith's arcing blade, his skull slamming into Faith's shin. Dropping to one knee, Faith grunted and slammed her fist into the demon's neck, making it squeal as it rolled away and out of Buffy's range as she attempted to swing at him.

Getting up, Faith spun quickly, hearing footfalls behind her, and cried out as she was body slammed by another Kartuk. Falling to the ground, Faith's sword clattered and flipped in the dusty earth, settling too far out of her reach. Hearing Buffy kick the other Kartuk, Faith rolled onto her back and flipped herself up, quickly finding the second Kartuk which was tag-teaming her and Buffy. The sounds of girls yelling, demons grunting, chanting, and fighting created a familiar cacophony of which Faith had only ever experienced from the averted apocalypse days. Sensing a Kartuk nearing her, Faith spun and landed a solid kick to his shoulder, sending the small demon stumbling to her left, allowing for her to get in a left hook to his jaw, bypassing the horns as she did so. A third demon, sent flying from the other group of slayers, hit the ground and rolled into Faith, sending her off-balance which was enough for her Kartuk to move toward her, and the Kartuk Buffy was fighting to drop out of the scuffle and make a run for Faith. Spinning out of the recovered and charging Kartuks' paths, Faith heard them collide with a howl of pain. Still not fully balanced, Faith could feel Buffy coming to her aid, and finally grasped the handle of the dropped broad sword.

"Faith!" Buffy yelled as she ran to get to her, Faith sensing too late that the thrown Kartuk was coming at her.

_Why does this always happen to me?_ Faith thought, wincing as she leaned her body into the barreling demon, his small, hefty frame knocking her to the ground. A last second head tuck, kept Faith from slamming her head onto the ground, but sacrificed her ability see exactly what happened to the Kartuk that hit her. Shoving the weight off of her, Faith rolled again, her sword lost a second time, only to yell out in fury as she felt a horn gouge its way into her side. Ripping the short knife blade from her boot, Faith spun her bleeding torso and slammed the blade into the demon's throat to the hilt, wrenching to the right, almost completely decapitating the beast. Collapsing to her knees with the dead weight, Faith pulled the blade free and jammed it into the ground, slowly pulling the horned head from her body.

Dropping the demon's body next to her, Faith glanced up and saw Buffy swing the scythe in a full arc, neatly decapitating one of the two Kartuk attacking her. Wincing, Faith grabbed her knife and sheathed it, standing slowly and grabbing the broad sword yet again. Seeing the third Kartuk charge Buffy from behind, sending her tumbling in the dust, Faith lumbered forward to stand near the blonde as Kartuk turned to make another pass. As it picked up speed, Faith moved quickly in front of Buffy while she began to stand and crouched with the blade sticking straight towards the demon. It was too late for it to slow down or move out of the pathway of the deadly weapon, and the blade slid through the beast easily, sticking out the other side from his momentum.

"Faith, are you okay?" Buffy asked, her hand on Faith's shoulder.

Faith pulled the blade free and stood to look at her lighter counterpart, _always a yin and yang with us, isn't it?_

"I've had worse," Faith replied, causing Buffy to look curiously at her.  
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_Faith knelt on the ground, covered head to toe in blood. Demon, human - mostly her own - mixed together, making her sticky as Faith wrenched her axe free from the demon in front of her, wincing at the barbs stinging in her back that the vampire shamans had thrown at her._

_Standing shakily, Faith turned to glance back at the small army she had with her, most of them dead on the ground, ripped to shreds from the demons they came ill prepared to fight. Maybe this was one apocalypse she couldn't stop._

_"You are not strong enough, Slayer," the head shaman jeered._

_"Strong enough to kill you, you ol' snaggle-tooth," Faith replied, grunting as she pulled a grenade free from her belt and threw it towards him, running forward as she did so._

_The shamans rose in unison, preparing to flee, only to be held to their spots, Faith silently thanking the gods that her one magick user wasn't dead yet. Dropping behind a boulder, Faith felt the explosion, rocks and dirt showering her, mixing with her uncountable open wounds. Too many blades, claws and teeth had gotten to her. All she had to do was get to the top of this one hill, and stop the ritual._

_Sometimes even little things seem too difficult._

_Grunting, Faith stood up, feeling woozy from so much blood loss. Moving around the boulder, Faith gripped her axe better and sprinted to the crest of the hill, finding five of the vampire shamans, including the head one awaiting her arrival, _well shit_, Faith thought, changing her stance to better prepare herself for the assault._

_"You're dead Slayer," the head shaman growled._

_"Not before I take you with me," Faith replied, "But I gotta hand it to ya for trying an apocalypse. Most vamps don't think so long term."_

_"We are beyond vampires, we are Forever," the shaman declared._

_Faith swung her axe into the first attacking shaman, beheading him. As the group stopped to watch him dust, the inverted scream of his death settling over them, Faith looked at the group, "Still seem pretty killable to me."  
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Seeing Rona's body flying back into the brush brought Faith back to the present, and she refocused herself, turning to take in the battle.

It was chaos, to put it simply. The Slayers were fighting their best in pairs, Vi going to attend Rona, Kennedy dragging an injured Aggie further from the battle, the roar of a Hellmouth beast as Angel severed one of its limbs with a sword, T'wanii's war cry as he pulled a Kartuk demon's head free from its body with his bare hands, the sound of the shaman's chanting, and the ever-increasing sound of the Coven's chanting in the woods nearby, accompanied by a rustling that meant that Sandra and the Scoobies were fighting to protect the focused women. Concentrating, Faith hefted her sword and followed Buffy as she pursued the next nearest Kartuk.

Severing the arm from a charging Kartuk, Faith spun, crouching and ducking out a leg as she did so, disconnecting the next charging demon from his ankles and feet. The blur of movement, her slayer senses guiding what she did, Faith was one with her calling, feeling the harmonious connection with her sister slayer, as the blonde used Faith's bent back to roll over and kick a Kartuk in the jaw, sending him sprawling into another demon, who was quickly dispensed with by Britt. Moving to the next demon, Faith heard the scream of one of the girls, and her attention faltered.

"Man down!" A voice yelled, the cacophony of the battle stripping of her from being able to place who spoke.

Her focus momentarily broken, a Kartuk barreled into her, knocking her over yet again. Groaning, Faith rolled, only to feel a surge of emotion through her connection, and watched as Buffy arced the scythe over Faith's head, decapitating the Kartuk, protecting her from being run over by the demon's second run.

"C'mon, we need to gather around the wounded," Buffy told her, pulling her up with her free arm.

"I don't count?" Faith grumbled as they jogged over to the group of girls who were forming a wide semi-circle around several fallen comrades.

Another yell of pain stopped her, and Faith turned, seeing T'wanii fall, Trey still struggling to get up from being knocked over as her demon pair collapsed to the ground from two Kartuk demons double teaming him. Not even thinking, Faith left the group and sprinted, the adrenaline making her forget of her own injury at the moment.

_Won't get there in time_, Faith thought, seeing far too much ground between her and Trey as the demons began charging her stumbling and injured form. Letting out a guttural yell, Faith lifted her sword and threw it as hard as she could toward the demons, forcing her body to jump to get closer. Landing without seeing what damage her weapon had done, Faith rolled, feeling herself slam into a solid being. Yanking her knife from her boot, Faith righted herself to her knees, one foot on the ground for pivoting, and spun enough to catch the demon she had barreled into as he righted himself next to her. Grabbing him by his stringy black hair, Faith yanked him towards her and buried her knife into his neck to the hilt. Dropping the body to the ground, Faith stood, her hand and the knife coated in the blackish blood.

Breathing heavily, Faith turned and saw Trey, her eyes wide, staring at her, the other Kartuk feet from her, the sword she had thrown wiggling as the demon twitched from the blade going through its torso. Standing over the demon, Faith shoved the sword deeper and then wrenched it free.

"You good?" Faith asked Trey, pulling her up from the ground.

Trey nodded quickly, "T'wanii..."

Faith nodded and turned toward the fallen comrade, feeling Buffy's worry over them being too far away from the protection of the larger group seeping through their connection. Ignoring the feeling for the moment, Faith knelt by T'wanii, watching as his chest rose and fell in shallow breaths.

"We can't risk bringing him over there now, so we gotta protect him here, ya got me?" Faith looked at Trey, who nodded solemnly.

Raising her sword, Faith eyed her surroundings, shifting slightly as she took in the Kartuk regrouping, their numbers dwindling, but still effective against them. It was then that the shaman all faltered slightly, and Faith knew that the Coven had broken their protection spell. Almost instantly, Faith saw a curved knife arc beautifully into the group, slamming into the chest of what looked like the most prestigious of them. Seeing Vi and Rona guarding the injured, Faith watched as Buffy led the others into a direct assault on the shamans.

"Go, I'll protect him. The Kartuk are gonna wanna protect their magick men more than come after our wounded," Trey told her, and Faith didn't wait a moment longer before bursting forward in a flat out run toward the shaman, and _Buffy_, Faith thought, her mind on the one single person in the middle of the fray.

It didn't take much, a stab here, and elbow there, for Faith to get to her blonde counterpart. Slamming her sword into the chest of a Kartuk which was about to attack Buffy from behind, Faith moved in and pushed her back against the other Slayer, providing a circular arc of attack between the two of them, _oh the damage we can do together_. Slicing another shaman down, Faith heard Sandra yell from the woods for back up, causing Buffy to yell to Kennedy and Aggie to go. Catching a glimpse of the women running for the woods, Faith stabbed a Kartuk, throwing a punch to another demon over the blade as she began to pull it free. Faith felt Buffy fall behind her, and saw a gash from claws running down her side into her thigh when she turned to aid her. _C'mon B, we can do this_, Faith thought, grunting as she pulled the blonde back up, only to receive a kick to her side, knocking her down onto one knee. Looking up, Faith chanced a glance around her.

The Kartuk were scrambling to fight, but their numbers were quickly dwindling as the shaman lost their power and their lives; Trey was gathering the fallen together as best she could, a slain Kartuk near her feet as she helped what looked like Britt limp over to T'wanii. The Coven's chanting was loud enough to make it through the sounds of battle, and even the Hellmouth seemed to be gasping its last breath as Spike and Angel repeatedly stabbed and attacked a multi-limbed beast who had been locked from re-entry into the now-closed Hellmouth. Above her, Faith watched, entranced, as Buffy swung her scythe - because Faith could see now, that while it was for all Slayers, she was really _the_ Slayer to wield it - the arc of the weapon beheading three demons converging on the two of them, and landing finally in the chest of the last shaman, and Faith couldn't remember the last time she had seen anything so beautiful.

Standing back up, Faith was suddenly aware of the silence around them, the heavy breathing of the Slayers the only sound breaking it. Looking around, Faith watched as Vi pulled her axe from the last Kartuk. Faith turned to look at Buffy, catching the glimpse of dark eyes, knowing the post-slayage desires were already unfurling within her. Faith herself could feel a need for food, not to mention a good fuck.

"C'mon, lets go check on who's hurt, Willow says its over," Buffy stated, moving toward Trey.

"How...?" Faith began, only to shake her head, not wanting to fully understand the red-haired witch's powers of communication.

Faith saw Angel and Spike melt into the woods, as the first streaks of dawn made pink fingers in the sky over their heads. Moving toward the growing group of Slayers, Faith watched the Coven and the other Scoobies emerge from the brush, Kennedy helping a limping Willow, and Sandra carrying Dawn, who Faith could see was conscious, but injured in a way she couldn't immediately perceive. Xander and Giles followed, helping a limping and bloody Andrew walk between them with Aggie beside the trio.

Turning to look at the girls, Faith saw the tear-streaked faces of Jack and Vi before taking in the whole scene. Tonya lay cradled in Rona's arms looking as if she were asleep, but Faith knew better than to think that. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Faith shifted her gaze to a still breathing T'wanii, who lay next to Trey, who was kneeling to close Jess's eyes. _God, she was only 15_, Faith thought.

"Irene," Buffy turned to the leader of the Coven, her face solemn as she addressed the elder woman, "do you and the Coven have enough energy to move the injured and deceased?"

Irene closed her eyes momentarily, "We can will stretchers to be brought, but not even grouped together do we have enough energy for that. I am sorry."

Buffy nodded, "Thank you, whatever you can do will be enough."

Faith sighed and slumped to the ground, suddenly finding her legs too tired to hold her up anymore.

"Faith? Are you okay?" Buffy asked, leaning over her.

"Five by, B. Just a lil' tired from the blood loss," Faith answered, feeling a slight wave of dizziness overcome her, "But hey- apocalypse averted."

A grim smile appeared on the blonde's face before she sat down next to the rogue slayer, "It's finally over."

"Whoot," Xander chimed in, as he collapsed into a sitting position near them, his tone lacking the usual mirth and sarcasm.

"What now, Buffy?" Vi asked, as she stood from Britt, her shirt torn to help slow the blood flow from the gash in her neck.

Buffy closed her eyes, and Faith watched the weariness at being in charge begin to take its hold on the older slayer.

"Motorbate. Let's get the severely wounded, or unable to walk onto the stretchers and back to the first load of vehicles. Sandra take the lead," Faith began, her voice getting louder as she began to take charge, knowing that Buffy needed a rest.

Sandra nodded, yanking Xander to come with her as she moved to the recently summoned stretchers.

"Next group are the rest of the injured who need medical attention. The last group will be the healthiest of the group, who will bring in Tonya and Jess," Faith finished, her gaze falling on the two bodies.

As the group began to move and mobilize, Faith turned to look at Buffy, a look of respect coming from the blonde's eyes.

"What?" Faith asked, feeling slightly surprised at the look the woman was giving her.

"You're a leader, Faith," Buffy commented quietly, a small smile appearing on her tired face, "When did that happen?"

Faith shrugged, "Who knows, B. Just don't go ruining my slacker image, 'k?"

Buffy smirked, but didn't reply, and turned to look at the group, "What do you wanna do now?"

It took a moment before Faith realized Buffy was talking to her, "A blood transfusion is topping my list, but as soon as that's done, well..." Faith trailed off, smirking when Buffy glanced back at her, an eyebrow arched.

"R&R?" Buffy filled in.

"More like H&H, B. Think you can handle it?" Faith asked, grinning.

"Think you can?" Buffy replied, a mischievous smile spreading across her face.

"I don't wanna interrupt the extreme case of innuendos and sexual comments you two are starting in on, but guys?" Dawn interjected, seated nearby on the ground, "Kinda not the place to be doing it."

Buffy glanced from Dawn to Faith before nodding and standing, Faith following soon after. Looking back at the carnage behind the group, Faith thought, _its over. Finally._

"I so totally want a vacation from Hellmouths," Kennedy commented, lifting a stretcher with a groaning Andrew on it, Giles grabbing the other end.

"Amen sister," Rona stated, lifting a fist up into the air from where she stood, grabbing a stretcher with Vi.

_Amen to that._ Faith thought.

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(stay tuned for a soon to be uploaded epilogue!)

The story isnt meant to feel fully wrapped up, if anyone got that impression, as I have had ideas for writing a sequel, and wanted to leave a feeling of continuity in the story just in case I follow through.


	26. Rest Stop Redux

This is the epilogue folks, sorry to drag this out for almost 3 (!!!) full years. I hope you enjoyed the story as much as I did writing it. Let me know if you think a sequel would be a good idea, as I've been toying with the idea. Though if I do write one, it'll not only take a while (no surprise there), but it also won't be for a while.  
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Frank was just finishing up locking up the restaurant for the night, his keys jingling on the clasp attached to a belt loop on his pants. Paul and Lydia had already left ten minutes ago, and he was tossing the last bag of trash into the dumpster when he heard the sound of a motorcycle ripping up the pavement along the highway.

Walking around his restaurant, Frank made his way to his rusted Ford truck, the headlamp of the motorcycle lighting up the roadway in front of him as it approached. Unlocking his door, Frank stopped as he heard the bike decelerate. Turning from his truck, Frank watched as a black Ducati pulled into the dusty parking lot and circled slowly closer to him. It carried two passengers, both female from their sizes, he guessed.

As it came to a stop close to him, the driver killed the engine and dropped the kick stand. Pulling the helmet off, Frank's eyes widened as he saw the same brown-haired woman who had dropped in for coffee almost a year ago on her way up to, _Ohio__ was it?_ Frank couldn't remember right.

"Remember me?" the woman asked, her voice still gravelly, a small smile flashing briefly on her features.

Nodding Frank took her in, and glanced over her shoulder at the still seated passenger, who had removed her own helmet to reveal an attractive blonde woman. Looking back at the dark-haired woman, Frank noticed there was a lightness in her eyes, something that had not been there the last time he had seen her.

Frank watched as the woman pulled two one-dollar bills from her back pocket and handed them over to him, his hand lifting as if it had a mind of its own. The questioning look in his eyes must have conveyed his confusion as he first looked down at the money and then back at the woman.

"I got home. Thanks for the coffee," the woman explained, and suddenly Frank understood.

"Come back anytime," Frank replied, smiling softly, watching as the brunette walked back to her bike and slung a lean leg over the body of it.

Looking back at him, the brunette nodded, "Will do."

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_fin_

Thanks for all the feedback over the years!


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